Mr Chairman, Sir, yesterday on the 14th of April, 2010, I, along with some Legislatures and political workers from my party, visited the villages and homes of the families of five slain martyrs in the districts of Bulandshahr and Gautam Buddha Nagar in the Western Uttar Pradesh. Forty three out of these 76 people in Uttar Pradesh have been martyred in this horrific massacre. What I saw, Sir, shook me to my very core. Sir, I went to the Tehsils of Khujra, Jewar, Bulandshahr, Anupshahr and Agota. I learnt from the first village called Bodha that no representation from either the Union or the State government had initiated any contact with them personally. They had no idea that the world was even aware of their deep suffering. Neither the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, nor any Minister of any member of the Union government, nor even, in fact, their local MP or MLA had bothered to meet them. In their grief, they sat in darkness, completely isolated.

As I went to the second village called Pachauta, I sat near the brave young martyr's widow, with his three-year-old son on my lap, as he asked me where his father was. I asked myself, "What should I tell him? Should I tell him of his father's bravery? Would it mean anything to him?" The larger question, Sir, is not whether it would mean anything to that three-year-old child, but, does the bravery of that soldier, the protector of our liberties, of our democracy - does his shahadat, does his martyrdom mean anything to our larger system? I am not just talking about the government here, because this is not really a time to do politics, but does it mean anything to the India of today? Have we become so cynical as a nation that every death, every martyrdom today has become merely a statistic that we can gloss over, that we can take for granted?

In the third village I went to, Sir, they had told me of their desire to erect a statue to celebrate the martyr's bravery, to honour their memory. They have been told that no public funds can be allowed for this. It is a sad day for Indian democracy when State governments have the money to build statues of their living leaders with handbags, but not of the martyred sons of the soil. No financial assistance has been given to them as yet. Why? Because of bureaucratic red-tapism.

When we have to wait for a driving licence because of red-tapism, we will wait. When we have to wait for a telephone connection because of loopholes within the system, we will grin and bear it. But when we have to watch our martyrs wait in silence for weeks and months at a time for what they deserve, rather a pittance compared to what they deserve, then we cannot and should not bear this.

Sir, Henri David Thoreau once said, "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation." This is not an issue to play politics with, as a said earlier. But the nation must fight for those who have fought with every drop of their blood to protect it.

My suggestion is that immediately a member of each family be given a permanent Government job, some land from the Gram Sabha, the mother of each martyr should be given a lifelong pension. This is something that the NDA government did after the Kargil war - the mother of each martyr was given a lifelong pension. Additionally, assistance should be given to build a small memorial in their respective villages. This would breed a nationalist spirit amongst our youth.

Also, Sir, immediately the CRPF should be given insurance in high risk areas, like the army receives. I pray that as a system we act, act swiftly and act strongly for these brave sons of the soil. Jai Hind.

Click here to see more pictures from Shri Gandhi's visit to the families of slain CRPF personnel