“We must give him a good farewell, a smiling send-off,” Geetika Lidder said, as she accepted the national flag that draped the coffin of her husband Brigadier L S Lidder.
Defence Assistant to Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat, Brig Lidder, was on the ill-fated helicopter that crashed in Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday. He too died in the crash along with Gen Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat and 10 other military officials.
The mortal remains of Brig Lidder were consigned to flames at the Brar Square crematorium in Delhi Cantonment on Friday.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval were at the crematorium to pay homage to the departed soul and console the bereaved family.
His wife Geetika and daughter Aasthna were in tears as they bid him adieu. They, however, regained composure soon, just as any military family would.
“I am a soldier's wife,” said Geetika.
Aasthna, who is going to be 17 soon, added: “My father was a hero, my best friend”.
Lidder, an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, was commissioned in the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles (JAKRIF) in December 1990 and commanded a JAKRIF battalion in Congo while participating in a peacekeeping mission of the United Nations.
He also commanded a brigade that was deployed along the disputed India-China boundary and served at the Directorate of Military Operations.
Lidder joined the office of the Chief of Defence Staff as his Defence Assistant last January. He was due to be promoted to the rank of Major General and would have taken over the command of a division.
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