From wedding dreams to martyrdom: Hawk Force hero Ashish Sharma laid to rest

Bohani (Narsinghpur), Nov 20 (IANS) In a cruel twist that has left an entire village speechless with grief, Madhya Pradesh Police Hawk Force Inspector Ashish Kumar Sharma was cremated with full state honours at Bohani's Muktidham on Thursday, exactly two months before the day he was supposed to bring his home a bride. 
 

The 32-year-old elite Hawk Force officer was martyred recently on November 19 when his team came under heavy fire during an anti-Maoist operation in Kauhapani forest along the Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh border in Rajnandgaon district.

Hit by four bullets, he fought till the end and was declared "Shaheed" (martyred) in hospital a few hours later.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav reached Bohani in Narsinghpur district to pay his last respects, placed a wreath on the tricolour-draped body, saluted the martyr and sat for several minutes with the bereaved mother who kept stroking her son's face.

In an emotional tweet, the Chief Minister on his official X account said, "The entire state of Madhya Pradesh stands with the family in this hour of grief."

"The glorious story of his bravery and supreme sacrifice will always be remembered and will continue to inspire generations."

CM Yadav said, "To perpetuate his memory, the state government has decided to construct a park and a sports stadium in the martyrs' native village, which will be named after him. Additionally, the younger brother of one of the martyrs will be appointed as a Sub-Inspector in the Madhya Pradesh Police."

The Inspector's mortal remains reached the village on Thursday morning from Madhya Pradesh's Balaghat after thousands lined the roads from Jabalpur to Narsinghpur, showering flowers on the ambulance and raising slogans of "Ashish Sharma amar rahe" and "Bharat Mata ki jai".

Ashish Sharma was no ordinary policeman.

He was the man who made Maoists fear the very mention of the Hawk Force.

He joined the Madhya Pradesh Police in 2016, volunteered for the anti-Maoist Hawk Force in February 2018, earned two gallantry medals and received an out-of-turn promotion from Sub-Inspector to Inspector on February 21, 2023, after killing two senior female Maoist commanders Sunita and Sarita (combined bounty of Rs 28 lakh) in the Kawal encounter.

On December 18, 2022, he eliminated Rs 14-lakh bounty Maoist Godi in Harratol.

In February 2025, his team gunned down four Maoists in Raunda forests of Balaghat -- an operation so perfectly executed that the site is now part of the training module for new DSPs (Deputy Superintendents of Police) and young officers are taken there to be told, "This is how Ashish Ashish Sharma did it."

Every senior officer, who served with Inspector Ashish Kumar Sharma, says the same thing -- he always took the most dangerous position in the formation, always walked the talk and always smiled when bullets flew.

Instead of processional music, the village heard only the sound of the last post and the crack of the three-volley salute.

In Bohani village on Thursday afternoon, Ashish's mother draped an unfinished wedding turban on her son's body, kissed his forehead one last time, sobbing inconsolably that broke even the toughest policemen standing guard.

Inspector Ashish Sharma is survived by his parents and a younger brother.

--IANS

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