Delhi BMW crash: Watch for dad, earrings for mom — birthday gifts that weren't to be

NEW DELHI: For 21-year-old Navnoor Singh, Tuesday was meant to beryllium a time of celebration. He had started moving lone precocious and was eagerly looking guardant to celebrating his day with his parents connected Sept 16.

He had already decided connected the gifts he'd bargain with his archetypal wage — a ticker for his begetter and earrings for his mother. But connected the eve of that day, Navnoor sat successful the lobby of a hospital, grieving the nonaccomplishment of his begetter and waiting anxiously for his parent to recover.His father, Navjot Singh, lawman caput successful the concern ministry's section of economical affairs, was killed and his mother, Sandeep Kaur, critically injured successful an mishap adjacent Dhaula Kuan connected Sunday.

"They were much similar friends than parents," Navnoor told TOI. "They would spell retired connected tiny dates each weekend. My begetter would instrumentality the car to work, but erstwhile it came to taking my parent out, helium preferred the bike."

Navjot Singh (57) had built a distinguished vocation successful govt service. After graduating from Hansraj College, DU, helium pursued his master's successful botany and cleared the SSC CGL exam successful 1995. Over the years, helium served successful some the defence and concern ministries, astir precocious overseeing India's economical coordination with Japan and South Korea.

In June this year, helium represented India astatine the UN during the Fourth Preparatory Committee Session for the International Conference connected Financing for Development, attended by respective heads of state, ministers, high-level govt officials and elder officials of planetary organisations. He often accompanied concern curate Nirmala Sitharaman to planetary conferences, his enactment taking him to the US, Spain, New Zealand, and different countries.At home, helium ensured a work-life balance. Navnoor described his begetter arsenic idiosyncratic who profoundly cherished life's pleasures. He loved motorcycles, precocious riding a Triumph Scrambler 400x aft years with his aged Royal Enfield."He was passionate astir photography, ever carrying his nonrecreational camera or, lately, a caller telephone helium decided to bargain solely for its camera quality. He had an oculus for detail. Even connected trips, similar erstwhile they went to Vietnam past year, helium would papers everything," said Navnoor.The household had conscionable celebrated Navjot and Sandeep's 23rd wedding day connected Sept 1. "My parents were champion friends first," their lad recalled. "They truly enjoyed each other's company. We've been surviving present for 4 generations. My great-grandfather served successful the British Indian Army, and my grandfather, who is 85, is simply a retired Indian Air Force officer."Navnoor remembers the past speech with his begetter vividly.

"I was leaving for my friend's location to observe my day a time aboriginal truthful I could person clip with my parents. He said ‘bye', and I told him I'd spot him precise soon. I had afloat intended to walk clip with them this year."The astir achy portion for him is his begetter volition ne'er get to spot the gifts helium chose for them. "I had picked retired the ticker already. I knew precisely what helium wanted, and however blessed it would marque him. For my mother, I had selected the earrings she wanted.

I couldn't hold to springiness it to them," helium said.Bitty Singh, Navjot's sister-in-law, said, "He was ever similar a member to me. He had represented India astatine the UN Peace Forum, IMF and successful China. He was doing truthful good for himself. He was specified a saccharine psyche — jolly, likeable and genuinely everyone's favourite."Also read: Road crash: BMW rams motorcycle adjacent Delhi Cantt; concern ministry authoritative dead, woman injured