Remembering Zoya And Zain: Tears, Prayers Mark First Death Anniversary Of Twins Who Fell To Pak Shelling In Poonch
Silence echoed through Poonch yesterday as people observed first death anniversary of siblings Zain and Zoya killed in Pakistani shelling last year, reports Amir Tantray.
Published : May 8, 2026 at 8:32 AM IST
Poonch: Even after multiple surgeries, Rameez Ahmed Khan lacks sensation in his left arm. But those close to him say the numbness, deeper than that of the arm, lies elsewhere - in a father’s heart that has lost Zain and Zoya, his twins, and is still processing to accept the truth.
Exactly a year ago, twin siblings Zain and Zoya lost their lives close to their house at Chakthru Kalani village on the Poonch-Mandi road due to indiscriminate shelling by Pakistan following Pahalgam revenge. Even after 365 days, nothing has broken the silence of the house. Children's school bags, tiny footsteps and their toys have become memories.
On Thursday, with tears in eyes and prayers in heart, relatives, neighbours and villagers got together at Rameez's home for Fateh Khwani and special prayers marking the twins’ first death anniversary. The two graves in the backyard remained covered with flowers, reminding of the fateful day when shells struck life out of the kids.
For Rameez, the wounds remain, and probably he does not want to heal.
He vividly remembers the tragedy that unfolded on the morning of May 7, 2025, during intense cross-border shelling in Poonch. Fearing for their safety, Rameez had decided to leave the rented accommodation where the family was staying. His brother-in-law had driven all the way from Surankote to rescue them from the danger zone.
As Rameez, his wife and the twins stepped out into a narrow lane to board the vehicle, they were hit by shells. Zain and Zoya were killed on the spot. Rameez suffered critical injuries but his wife survived because she was a little farther, escaping the direct impact.
Locals rushed the injured to District Hospital Poonch. The twins were declared brought dead. Rameez was later shifted to Government Medical College Rajouri and then to GMC Jammu for advanced treatment.
But the cruelest moment came when Rameez regained consciousness after a few days of the incident. Time, he was unaware, had buried his twins. Inconsolable he was when he got to know that he would never get to see them one last time.
People close to him say that pain defines his existence. Shehzad Khan, a relative of the family, said the children are remembered as martyrs in Poonch. “Their sacrifice can never be forgotten. The entire town still carries their memory,” he said.
But the grief was not confined to the family alone.
At Christ School Poonch, where the twins studied, teachers and classmates spent months battling trauma after the shelling. Principal Shijo recalled how difficult it had been for students to return to normalcy.
“One of Zoya’s closest friends wanted to change her classroom because she could not bear sitting there without her. It took a long time for the children to emotionally recover,” he said.
The school also continues to remember another student, Vihaan Bhargav, who lost his life during the shelling.
But for Rameez and his wife, they live because they breathe and their is no other way not to.
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