Irfan Ramzan Sheikh, a 14-year-old boy hailing from Jammu and Kashmir, on Tuesday was honoured with Shaurya Chakra for exhibiting an extraordinary show of bravery and maturity by preventing a terror attack on his house in October 2017.Shaurya Chakra is usually awarded to armed forces and para-military personnel for “gallantry otherwise in the face of the enemy”
During the intervening night of October 16-17 of 2017, terrorists cordoned off the house of Sheikh. His father Mohammad Ramzan was an ex-sarpanch with affiliations to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
When Sheikh, the eldest son of Mohammad Ramzan, opened the door, he found three terrorists in the verandah of the house armed with rifles and grenades.
Sensing that the militants could harm his family, he exhibited highest degree of courage and faced the militants for sometime so as to avoid their entry inside the house. In meantime, his father came out and the militants pounced on him, resulting in scuffle.
Sheikh did not think for a moment for his own safety and pounced upon the terrorists for safeguarding the life of his father and other family members.
The terrorists also resorted to indiscriminate firing, resulting in severe injury to Sheikh’s father. He later succumbed.
However, Sheikh did not lose courage and continued to engage in scuffle with one of the militants, who resorted to indiscriminate firing resulting in severe injuries to the militant as well.
On seeing one of their associates injured, the terrorists tried to flee. However, Sheikh chased them and they left the body of their fellow militant behind.
Irfan Ramzan Sheikh exhibited the extraordinary show of bravery and maturity in such a small age and set example for other youth of Kashmir to stand in support of their families.
