Goswami's tale

Since I'm incapacitated, my friends call me up all day and all night. Shahnaz and I talk nights, discussing our fathers, our dogs, the army and she tells me incredible tales of the fauji. 

She told me an story today which made me forget my spider bite completely. Shahnaz's father was a Vir Chakra recipient and a fine soldier. My grandfather, who was also an army officer, spoke of Brig Mansingh with  much fondness. Her story goes like this.....

In 1962, Chushul was a place which saw incredible fighting. The Chinese overran Indian posts and the Indian soldier fought back with an focused intensity and power, with complete disregard for the enemy's superior numbers and stealthy, sneaky attack!

There is  saying in street fights that he who throws the first punch, wins the fight.

It is completely the opposite with the Indian soldier.....he never attacks first, he always defends. But when he defends, history bears witness that he then is unconquerable. Victory then is his and he creates legendary sagas of his ferocity and his courage. 

So Shahnaz told me of 2nd Lieutenant Goswami who fought the Chinese with 4 other men at his post, guarding the vitally important airfield with his life. And withheld...and withheld....and withheld......till he was grievously injured and fell unconscious. Goswami was 24 years old. He lay buried under snow for 36 hours, regained consciousness and crawled away to safety! He lost his legs due to frostbite and stayed in hospital for a long, long time. He was later awarded the Mahavir Vir Chakra for unconscious bravery in the face of the enemy! 

Now for the part few know. 

A retired American sergeant heard about a lionhearted young Indian soldier and his lost limbs and he sent his life savings to the youngster.

2nd Lt Goswami got a pair of artificial limbs with that donation and could walk again. He came to meet Brig Mansingh and jumped smartly off the rickshaw and saluted sharply! Shahnaz says her father had tears in his eyes and he was thrilled to see the young officer in as good a shape as could be expected!

Do you know how this gallant man died?

He was set upon by goons, at the time Mulayam Singh held the post of  defence minister. And was murdered!

A lion set upon by hyenas.......a war hero killed by common criminals....and no one was brought to book!

Goswami was  born in Uttar Pradesh, 6th Nov,1938.

Mulayam was born in Uttar Pradesh, 22nd Nov, 1939.

One proved his mettle under fire and repaid his country's debt by holding his position till he was knocked out and literally overrun by the enemy! And sacrificed his limbs at age 24.

The other could not (did not) be bothered enough to get ordinary justice for an extraordinary man!

Shahnaz remembers her mother who flung herself on a sofa in a storm of angry tears and said "This is how we repay our soldiers" when she heard about Goswami's death. She swore she would write to all her contacts and get justice for the forgotten hero.....

Shahnaz and I fell quiet for a while...sometimes silence speaks eloquently. And I told her that we should pursue this.....write about passionate young men who dedicate their lives to the country and then do not turn away, no matter what the price. We should tell their stories. We should be the sentinels who stand guard over the fallen brave....we shall neither forget, nor let others forget!

We should be the watchdogs of the Indian soldier....and once in a year, the two of us should meet and have a roaring havan, just the two of us....where we pour our sentiments and sacred offerings in the memory of the fallen, forgotten Indian soldier! And gaze into the embers and honour those who blazed a trail and left us awestruck in their wake! And ask them for their blessings and a transference of the same courage, the same passion, the same steadfastness.

Nishi

Note:- For the history buffs, read about the Battle for Chushul airfield at:

http://www.bharat-rakshak.com/LAND-FORCES/History/1962War/264-chushul.html

An island of sanity in this maddening world!

Brings back fond memories...my baba would take us first to the campus Gurudwara and then the temple! Both adjacent! I still cannot enter a Gurudwara without remembering him! Went to Leh army temple this year, the Corps mandir, on Hanuman Jayanti! The army had the Gurudwara, Church and Temple all in one hall...not even a partition! Even a Tibetan shrine! I found it unremarkable....the day I hear army chaps discuss religion disrapagingly, I think it will be a most frightening day for me. When Raj Jackass Thackeray rabble roused "Maharastra For the Marathas/ Marathis?, I actually prayed that the very same issue should turn around and boomerang on him a thousandfold! It did...but since he is still standing, the boomarang will strike again, hopefully before long! Everytime I hear a ghoul in the garb of a politician talk of 'protecting the minority" and religion, I wish i could see him lashed instantly! Dead, destroyed, rotting.. and all that he represents, lying as dust!

I maintain that service even for a year as a Defence person for each man and woman should be mandatory! And spent guarding our frontiers! We shall then see who survives...The Hindu, the Muslim, the Christian, the Sikh...or just the Indian!

As a child, I saw lohri celebrations and danced around bonfires and it was a very welcome day for one ate as many revaris and peanut and popcorn preparations as one could desire! Only very greedy children will understand this joy. I have had sevai on Eid, sent home by fellow officers wives', in huge bowls for they did know that my mum possessed a greedy child! I have celebrated Pongal, by dancing in group dances, singing songs I did not know but learnt by rote! I did not even care what Pongal was! it was a holiday and great fun for the entire campus has evening programmes! I considered myself Sikh when my dad was posted in Punjab...would wish all "Sat Sri Akal" without knowing what it meant! Pronounced it as 'Sassriakal" and thought it was one word! I never heard my elders talk of their religion as the chosen one, the others less! I never heard them preach hatred or intolerence! Jamalludin, in my class, was merely a boy with a long name! I did not know about halal and jhatka meat till well after marriage...yes, where did I live?....I lived in defence campuses! I was in college when Indira Gandhi was assasinated. And I was a-boil with rage and horror. Was a "civilian" by then, living in hostel, facing sexist comments by strange men on roads and trying hard to control my temper and not go chasing after them and telling them to call their moms "sexy"! (I blame all mothers when their sons misbehave with women....why on earth did their mothers not do their jobs! i have a son and the day some girl complains that he called her "maal, or sexy", or something similar. or that he pinched her, manhandled her, I will slap myself first and then think what to do with my son later!) Sexy is NOT a compliment....it does not mean beauty! It implies that the woman is objectified! And while we are on this topic, Ila Arun did women a great disservice by singing the Choli song! If the music director wanted to have the song sung, HE should have sung it! Sly, double meaning, low bred hound! I have had this song sung to me...believe me, all my ladylike instincts abandoned me then and all I wanted to do was chase that sexist ass, sit on him and pummel him till he screamed for mercy! I have actually chased a guy on a cycle once when he sang out merrily to me....he was lucky as I have never been a runner yet outrage fuelled me to the extent that I ran along him for a few seconds till he pedalled hard with his rear in the air, and got away! May Ila Arun, the music writer and all the masterminds behind such songs find that their "art" flees them the instant they get down to penning such godawful lines! Service will benefit them too. Who will one call "maal" in a campus? The lady or girl is a fellow officer's wife or daughter or sister! And she knows her place in the world! And she is not afraid! She probably will not go for backup and will scream so long and hard that one will wish for a quick beating and then a getaway! The Forces do not foster an eve teasing culture!

Newspapers talk of drunk jawans misbehaving with women on trains...as a girl travelling alone, it was my fervent wish "God, let me get in the compartment filled with jawans! They will protect me! Save me from the daily commuters and the "students"! You can only begin to understand me if you have been a young female travelling alone in our trains! Polka dotted with blue bruises by the time one disembarked! Marked as prey the moment you were spotted! I would go up to the rowdiest, roughest looking lout, look him in the eyes, call him "bhaiya" and ask for help with my luggage! Never failed! The Forces teaches you survival too!

I got carried away....do read the article below....worth a read!

May our Armed Forces win the favour of all Gods! May they prevail! And may their jobs again acquire the glory and honour that was once associated with them! MAY THE WARRIOR ALWAYS BE ACKNOWLEDGED BY THE ONES HE PROTECTS....IN LIFE AND IN DEATH AND FAR BEYOND THE GRAVE!

...and may the little bit of the 'forces girl' left in me survive as long as I live for she is one of my best bits!
NISHI


Any one more secular than the army?

As a serving army officer, I never stop marvelling at the gullibility of our countrymen to be provoked with alacrity into virulence in the name of religion. I have never heard the word 'secular' during all my service -- and yet, the simple things that are done simply in the army make it appear like an island of sanity in a sea of hatred.

In the army, each officer identifies with the religion of his troops. In regiments where the soldiers are from more than one religion, the officers -- and indeed all jawans attend the weekly religious prayers of all the faiths. How many times have I trooped out of the battalion mandir and, having worn my shoes, entered the battalion church next door? A few years ago it all became simpler -- mandirs, masjids, gurudwars and churches began to share premises all over the army. It saved us the walk.

Perhaps it is so because the army genuinely believes in two central 'truths' -- oneness of god and victory in operations. Both are so sacred we cannot nitpick and question the basics.
In fact, sometimes the army mixes up the two! On a visit to the holy cave at Amarnath a few years ago I saw a plaque mounted on the side of the hill by a battalion that had once guarded the annual Yatra. It said, 'Best wishes from -....- battalion. Deployed for Operation Amarnath.
On another instance, I remember a commanding officer ordered the battalion maulaviji to conduct the proceedings of Janamashtmi prayers because the panditji had to proceed on leave on compassionate grounds. No eyebrows were raised. It was the most rousing and best-prepared sermon on Lord Krishna I have ever had the pleasure of listening to.

On the Line of Control, a company of Khemkhani Muslim soldiers replaced a Dogra battalion. Over the next few days, the post was shelled heavily by Pakistanis, and there were a few non-fatal casualties.

One day, the junior commissioned officer of the company, Subedar Sarwar Khan walked up to the company commander Major Sharma and said, "Sahib, ever since the Dogras left, the mandir has been shut. Why don't you open it once every evening and do aarti? Why are we displeasing the gods?"

Major Sharma shamefacedly confessed he did not know all the words of the aarti. Subedar Sarwar went away and that night, huddled over the radio set under a weak lantern light, painstakingly took down the words of the aarti from the post of another battalion!
How many of us know that along the entire border with Pakistan, our troops abstain from alcohol and non-vegetarian food on all Thursdays? The reason: It is called the Peer day -- essentially a day of religious significance for the Muslims.

In 1984, after Operation Bluestar there was anguish in the Sikh community over the desecration of the holiest of their shrines. Some of this anger and hurt was visible in the army too.

I remember the first Sikh festival days after the event -- the number of army personnel of every religious denomination that thronged the regimental gurudwara of the nearest Sikh battalion was the largest I had seen. I distinctly remember each officer and soldier who put his forehead to the ground to pay obeisance appeared to linger just a wee bit longer than usual. Was I imagining this? I do not think so. There was that empathy and caring implicit in the quality of the gesture that appeared to say, "You are hurt and we all understand."
We were deployed on the Line of Control those days. Soon after the news of disaffection among a small section of Sikh troops was broadcast on the BBC, Pakistani troops deployed opposite the Sikh battalion yelled across to express their 'solidarity' with the Sikhs.
The Sikh havildar shouted back that the Pakistanis had better not harbour any wrong notions. "If you dare move towards this post, we will mow you down."

Finally, a real -- and true -- gem....

Two boys of a Sikh regiment battalion were overheard discussing this a day before Christmas. "Why are we having a holiday tomorrow?" asked Sepoy Singh.
"It is Christmas," replied the wiser Naik Singh.
"But what is Christmas?"
"Christmas," replied Naik Singh, with his eyes half shut in reverence and hands in a spontaneous prayer-clasp, "is the guruparb of the Christians."

The Battle of Tololing Hill & Knoll - Capt Vijayant Thapar

http://www.captainvijyantthapar.com/lastletter.html

“The tyrant dies and his rule is over,
the martyr dies and his rule begins”

..Soren Kierkegaard

"It is better to live one day as a lion than a hundred years as a sheep."- Italian proverb

Here’s the saga of a 22 year old. He lived his one day as a lion. And what a story he left behind. Captain Vijayant Thapar (Robin) of 2 Rajputana Rifles, was awarded the Vir Chakra posthumously. His grandmother received it. Capt Thapar was the son of an Army officer and his grandfather too had served in the Army as an officer!

Vijyant after getting commissioned on the 12th Dec'98, joined the 2 Rajputana Rifles at Gwalior. The Battalion stayed barely for a month before they moved to Kashmir to check counter insurgency. Before being inducted he was given some training in an Army establishment then moved to Kupwara where he was involved in two fierce encounters. While talking to his mother on telephone he described how he lived through a live encounter in which about thirty bullets were fired at him. While still involved in this counter insurgency tasks, orders were received for the unit to move to Drass to evict the enemy who had occupied Tololing, Tiger Hill, and adjoining heights. Vijyant moved under the command of his CO, Col. M.B. Rabindernath, VrC and his Company Commander Major P. Acharya. The Battalion was then given the task of capturing Tololing. This was a God sent opportunity for Vijyant as he was an officer always looking for action. After the initial assault by Major Mohit Saxena was held up, on the night of 12th June'99 Capt. Vijyant Thapar led his platoon to capture Barbad Bunker. His diary notes shows how in the close combat he killed two militants and his disappointment at not being able to capture two enemies alive.

Battle of Tololing Knoll and Three Pimples

2 Raj Rif was given the task of captaining Toiling Knoll, Three Pimples. In this actions Robin fought like a man and true soldier. These forbidding heights were held by enemy Northern Light Infantry (NLI) . They had well constructed fortification very well stocked, well sited, dominating the narrow ridge line on which 2 Raj Rif had to attack. During this Battle Vijyant captured a Pakistani position called Barbad Bunker Pt. 4590. Tololing was the first victory for Indian Army on 13th June 1999 and has gone into history as a turning point in the war.

Atop Barbad Bunker position

After the successful capture of Tololing he spoke to his mother on V-Sat telephone and proudly said "Mama we have captured Tololing". Later on 28 June, 2 Raj. Rif. was given the task of capturing Three Pimples, Knoll and Lone Hill area. The attack started with Vijyant's platoon leading on a full moon night along a razor sharp ridge with no cover to offer. There was intense and accurate artillery shelling and heavy enemy fire. He lost some of his dear men and some more were injured causing the attack to be disrupted. However with his indominable spirit and tremendous urge to capture Knoll he got together, the remenants of his men and moved through a ravine to face the enemy. It was a full moon night . Moreover this was an impossible position to capture. The troops of 6 Northern Light Infantry had all the advantages. Strongly prepared positions, one narrow knife edge ridge, with precipitous slopes on both side, ravines thousands of feet deep, devoid of cover and almost vertical climbs at places.

At 8PM the attack commenced with a thunderous shatter as 120 guns opened fire, rockets hit up the sky. Shells, own and Pakistani covered the whole area mixed with lethal machine gun fire. Into this inferno 2 Raj Rif moved with Capt. Vijyant Thapar leading the attack. Among the first to fall in this rain of death was sepoy Jagmal Singh, Vijyant's very dear orderly.

While the exchange of fire was going on, full of excitement, Vijyant reached his Company which had already secured a foothold on Knoll. By this time his Company Commander Major P. Achrya had been killed. At this news Vijyant's anger was explosive. He surged ahead with his colleague Naik Tilak Singh. Both of them started engaging the enemy merely 15 mts. away. There were two enemy machine guns firing towards them. After about an hour and a half of fierceful exchange of bullets and abuses Vijyant decided that he had to end the enemy. As he moved up to do so a burst of fire struck him on his head. He fell in the arms of his comrade Naik Tilak Singh. A brave son of India had fallen. It was after that the men of his company charged and fully captured Knoll. The victory at Knoll on 29 June 1999, is a saga of bravery unmatched, and unbounded grit and determination. Courage alone and unflinching faith in almighty God alone turned a tactically impossible situation into a victory.

And this is the last letter he wrote to his family

Dearest Papa Mama Birdie and Granny,

1. By the time you get this letter, I'll be observing you all from the sky enjoying the hospitality of Apsaras.

2. I have no regrets, in fact even if I become a human again I'll join the Army and fight for the nation.

3. If you can, please come and see where the Indian Army fought for your tomorrow.

4. As far as this unit is concerned the new chaps should be told about this sacrifice.I hope my photo will be kept in the 'A' Coy mandir with Karni Mata.

5. Whatever organ can be taken, should be done.

6. Contribute some money to orphanage and keep giving 50/- Rs to Ruksana per month and meet Yogi Baba.

7. Best of luck to Birdie, never forget this sacrifice of these men. Papa you should feel proud. Mama so should you, meet ________ ( I loved her). Mamaji forgive me for evrything wrong I did.

Ok then its time for me to join my clan of the Dirty Dozen. My assault party has 12 chaps.

Best of luck to you all
Live life kingsize

Yours, Robin

I’m weeping like a fool here, my nose and eyes streaming. I have no composure! And I have this deep sense of loss…to lose a man who had such purity of thought! To know that one could die, and to run forth to embrace that death willingly! At 22!! This was an exceptional person. And he makes me feel so proud! Till the time India breeds soldiers of such mettle, we are safe in the face of any danger. Yet the mind rebels…how can men sacrifice themselves so willingly for us, their countrymen and we sit back and take it as our due? What do we give back? And how? Senator Robert F. Kennedy said "It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a person stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope. That ripple builds others. Those ripples - crossing each other from a million different centers of energy - build a current that can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and injustice."

Khushnaseeb hai wo jo

Watan pe mit jaate hai

Mar kar bhi wo log

Amar ho jaate hai

Karta hoon tumhe saalam

E-watan pe mitne walo

Tumhari har saans mein basta

Tirange ka naseeb hai

Lest WE Forget

26th July is Martyr's Day. It marks 10 years since the Kargil War...a war that no nation other than India recognises! A war that threw up daily acts of such raw courage that had we been a nation where the brave are feted, we would have run out of accolades. A war that would have had disastrous results had the Indian Armed Forces not proved itself to be one of the best in the world. A war that happened because we treated Pakistan and the threat it poses lightly. A decade later, we saw ‘Operation Kasab and his gang’ and the havoc they created in the heart of India ’s financial capital.

The heroes of Kargil are long gone, their work done. Each of their stories reads like a drumroll of honour. Men who were little more than boys and who turned into legends! I have not forgotten Capt. Vikram Batra, Capt Anuj Nayyar, Lt Vijayant Thapar, Lt Saurabh Kalia, Maj Ajay Jasrotia, and the countless others …their tales of valour must be read out to our children. We cannot afford to forget those who protected us at such odds!

There is a war still being fought in Kashmir where a young 25 year old Major fights with fifteen bullets in him and takes down three fidayeen down with him. We read about these men and turn the page. It is time to stand up and acknowledge our debt to the Armed Forces, time to realize the danger India is in, time to take action.

I do not know how to mark 26th of July. I do not know how to make it special. I would take my son to Amar Jawan Jyoti in Delhi and tell him the stories of these brave men. I also weep, mostly from pride! I might donate blood. Pretty futile gestures but they make me feel a little lighter!

I write this mail in the hope that all of us mark Martyr’s Day in any way we can. A nation is only as great as its heroes!

We need heroes to inspire and lend us clarity of mind and heart

Okay, I’ve been down and out lately…the men of inaction leaving me completely demoralized, quenching my inner fire, dousing the rage with the ice water of pseudo intellectual talk. I write with a pen weighing me down and I realize that I will not let my flame flicker and die out…I will talk of Sam Manekshaw…he who makes me smile as I write about him. We need heroes to inspire and lend us clarity of mind and heart. Why I write about him….

After 2300 years of unremitting defeats of Indian armies against every invading army, Sam Manekshaw made the country experience the glow of a stunning victory against the Pakistan army in what is now Bangladesh . That will remain Field Marshal Manekshaw's unique position in Indian military history.

Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw, known as Sam “Bahadur”, or Sam the Brave, an honorific given him by the Indian Army’s Gurkhas, the mustachioed, twinkle eyed dapper, gentleman with the admirable sense of humour and courage of steel….that outspoken master of detail, has the rare distinction of being honoured for his bravery on the battle front itself. During World War II, he was leading a counter-offensive against the invading Japanese Army in Burma. As he charged forward with his men, a Japanese soldier suddenly emerged from the bushes and fired at him, wounding him seriously in the stomach. He caught nine bullets! Major General D.T. Cowan spotted Manekshaw holding on to life and was aware of his valour in face of stiff resistance from the Japanese. He quickly pinned his own Military Cross ribbon on to Manekshaw saying, "A dead person cannot be awarded a Military Cross.”

On another occasion, a General accused of misusing funds was marched up to him. "Sir, do you know what you are saying?" asked the General. "You are accusing a General of being dishonest." Replied Manekshaw: "Your Chief is not only accusing you of being dishonest but also calling you a thief. If I were you I would go home and either shoot myself or resign. I am waiting to see what you will do." The General submitted his resignation that evening.

On one occasion, he found that the Defence Secretary had penned his own observations on a note he had written to the Prime Minister and Defence Minister. Infuriated, Manekshaw took the file and walked straight into Mrs Gandhi's office. He told her that if she found the Defence Secretary more competent than him to advise her on military matters she did not have a need for him. The Defence Secretary was found a new job.

How we paid our last respects to this stalwart who died in 2008 aged 90? A man who walked his talk and did his job with great dignity, honour, raw courage? Guess! The Prime Minister, along with the Army, Navy, and Air-Force Chief's, all missed his funeral—which was a modest one held in Tamil Nadu in the south, not a grand one in the capital.

If we had one Sam Bahadur in politics, we had nothing to fear! If we had a thousand Sam Bahadurs, India would be safe and well ahead of the rest.

What gives me hope is that Indians have shared their land with some mighty, mighty men….that there is a hidden message for all those who question being born in India. Do you think it is chance that made us Indians, a random occurence? Or do you see the potential? Why have we been born Indians is a question we have to answer ourselves….if you live the American dream, go ahead. If you despise your motherland, escape her! There is no right or wrong here. A man who is ashamed of his country is ashamed of himself...that is a cross he has to bear.

Famous quotations of Sam, the soldier

"Gentlemen, I have arrived and there will be no withdrawal without written orders and these orders shall never be issued" -During 1962 War, when he was sent to North East Frontier Agency (NEFA) to command retreating Indian forces against the Chinese force.

"I wonder whether those of our political masters who have been put in charge of the defence of the country can distinguish a mortar from a motor; a gun from a howitzer; a guerrilla from a gorilla.

"You received three at this age; when I was of your age, I received nine bullets and look- today, I am the Commander in Chief of the Indian Army."- During the 1971 Indo-Pakistan War when he met an injured soldier in Army Hospital with three bullet wounds.

"If anyone tells you he is never afraid, he is a liar or he is a Gurkha."- On the Gurkha Battalion of the Indian Army.

"I'm always ready, sweetie,"- 1971 war, on being asked by Indira Gandhi about the Indian Army's readiness.

"Don't you think I would be a worthy replacement for you, Madam Prime Minister? You have a long nose. So have I. But I don't poke my nose into other people's affairs."- To Indira Gandhi, on rumours of him planning a coup to replace her.

Fare thee well, old soldier! Your epitaph should read " Here lies A Man Of Action! Sleep well after a duty well done and God bless.

Vultures are circling the sky....look up!

I have been writing till my fingers cramp this past week…why? Why did I remain silent when Delhi saw blasts, during the Jaipur dhamakas? I lived in Delhi when we saw bombs going off in different places on different dates. So it is certainly not because of that I’m here now. It is because I saw a real threat, a very big danger to all India. This time the terrorist has planned and plotted for a long time and has reached a level of competency which surpasses its previous attempts by far. BY FAR! We are in terrible danger and the clock is ticking!

Today the level of this danger lies exposed when Pakistan has been reprieved by the US…Pakistanis have the world’s most wanted hidden away in their country which gives it an edge… America wants Osama so much that it would sell its mother to get at him. We have NO allies. We stand alone in the world today. I have 2 generations of Forces blood in my veins…believe me, we are on the highway to disaster if we do not take a tough stand today. The civilian may be unaware but this exact scenario is what we have talked about for years in the fauji circles…..ask them, it comes as no surprise there. What do you expect when Pakistan has gotten away with murder, no pun intended, for years? It was stated ‘Ki humko ghar mein ghush kar marega Pakistani’ if we did not show our teeth. We have miles and miles and miles of borders….impossible to patrol all the time. We have infiltration going on all the time….even a country like Bangladesh knows how easy it is to get into India . The Nepali comes and goes as he pleases. The terrorist comes and goes, tea in Pakistan , lunch in India , breakfast again in Pak!! God! Aren’t we gluttons for punishment! Can we check the billion Indians each time they travel…and their baggage? Is it humanly possible, especially now when the politicians’ long sweet siesta has resulted in terror cells all over the place… Hyderabad , Delhi , Mumbai…the terrorists have safe houses all over the countryside!

I repeat…hit them now and hit them hard. Hit the hands that feed them…attack the terror camps in Pak and blast them into kingdom come….the Armed Forces are ready. If there is anyone who deals us a winning hand it is them. The fauji wins every time…despite all odds. And we need to stop being scared so much…the person who has sympathy with the terrorist is nobody…he has no religion, no country…stop labeling them and pussyfooting around. We have to stop being defensive, stop protecting...we have to go on the offensive….make them protect themselves…let them also get a taste of blood and terror. The enemy will not stop, I stake my life on this fact. We will have to make them.

The vultures are circling in the sky….look up! We think the US is our godfather…fat chance! The US would be our best friend if we suddenly discovered oil….till then I am afraid, that you and me will have to protect each other’s back.

I am ready….are you?

A Soldier Died Today

A Soldier Died Today

He was getting old and paunchy and his hair was falling fast
And he sat around the Legion telling stories of the past,
Of a war that he had fought in and the deeds that he had done
In his exploits with his buddies; they were heroes, everyone.

And 'tho sometimes to his neighbors, his tales became a joke,
All his buddies listened, for they knew whereof he spoke.
But we'll hear his tales no longer, for old Bob has passed away
And the world's a little poorer, for a soldier died today.

No he won't be mourned by many, just his children and his wife,
For he lived an ordinary very quiet sort of life,
He held a job and raised a family, quietly going on his way;
And the world won't note his passing; 'tho a soldier died today.

When politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state,
While thousands note their passing and proclaim that they were great,
Papers tell of their life stories from the time that they were young,
But the passing of a soldier goes unnoticed, and unsung.

Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land
Some jerk who breaks his promise and cons his fellow man?
Or the ordinary fellow who in times of war and strife
Goes off to serve his Country and offers up his life?

The politician's stipend and the style in which he lives
Are sometimes disproportionate to the services he gives,
While the ordinary soldier, who offered up his all,
Is paid off with a medal, and perhaps a pension small.

It's so easy to forget them, for it was so long ago
That our Bob's and Jim's and Johnny's went to battle, but we know
It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys,
Who won for us the freedom that our country now enjoys.

Should you find yourself in danger with your enemies at hand,
Would you really want some cop-out with his ever waffling stand?
Or would you want a soldier who has sworn to defend
His home, his kin, and country, and would fight until the end?

He was just a common soldier and his ranks are growing thin
But his presence should remind us, we may need his like again.
For when countries are in conflict, then we find the soldier's part
Is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.

If we cannot do him honor while he's here to hear the praise,
Then at least let's give him homage at the ending of his days.
Perhaps just a simple headline in the paper that might say:
OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING, FOR A SOLDIER DIED TODAY.

God and the Soldier, we adore,
In time of danger, not before.
The danger passed and all things righted,
God is forgotten and the Soldier slighted.


Author Unknown


He went where others feared to go,
and did what others failed to do.
He cried, pained and hoped--
but most of all he lived times--
never to be forgotten.

If I do not sing long and loud today, then when do I?

A few friends feel I am taking things a bit too personally. Yes, I do that. India and Indians have been lampooned and lambasted enough in my opinion. We are a beautiful people. If you need to know what hospitality is all about, go to a village home. Go to an Indian anywhere in the world. In an obscure town in the US , a Gujarati running a motel, made me some most welcome masala tea after the dishwater I had been forced to ingest and fed us dinner. He did not charge a penny and told me that I was at my brother’s place. Look at the face of hospitality our Taj staff offered their guests when under attack…staying put when they could have fled, guiding and calming them and acting like human shields! A waiter doing this as part of his duty? I will look at a waiter with new eyes from now.

If you want to see bravery, meet the average Indian. The Bapi Sen who gives up his life saving an ordinary woman from hoodlums, the men who jump in raging rivers to save complete strangers from drowning, even my father who refuses to pay even the smallest of bribes (the chai-pani) and will run endlessly to get the smallest job done for months and dare you suggest that he simply pay that dratted bribe and be done with all the rigmarole …they are the simple ordinary folk who want to make a difference. One of our constables threw a chair at the terrorist firing with an AK-47…a chair!! It is like me standing at the border and spitting at the enemy…that futile but isn’t it simply a marvelous gesture.? Especially since the constable admits his legs were quaking!

You want to see courage under fire then you need to meet an Army jawan. He is one of the most ill-equipped, most disadvantaged pawn who goes in to fight losing battles, thanks to policies made by people who might collapse if they had to spend a night in a bunker at a remote post, and he still turns the tide. He wins the war. He certainly does not do it for money or recognition…he is just a pawn and will be just as easily be sacrificed.

You want to see tolerance then see us. We not only accept all our diversities, we tolerate such conditions of living which would make the inmates of Hell rebel. 48 hr power shortages, 10 hour power cuts daily, roads that would make a camel throw up, traffic jams that stretch endlessly during office hours and make us hit the road an hour early simply to escape the worst of it…and the poverty that we tolerate…deaths due to starvation in a world that staples it’s stomach to stop eating!

And I am taking it too personally…I think we all should! We make one of the world’s most beautiful people such underdogs that my very body organs are rebelling. What do you feel when you see an animal beaten to death, a small child being hit, a man standing up to twenty and being killed? Multiply it a thousandfold and that is my feeling. I know that I might achieve the very pinnacle of success personally but it means nothing if my countrymen are being bombed on a daily basis. Personal growth and development is nothing if we stand where we are today….if God himself told me that I could be a Lakshminarayan Mittal today if I just turned a blind eye to all the horror, I would refuse.

Life does go on…take away all four limbs and the eyes and cut off the ears and the nose and the tongue and life would go on. Is that what life is all about…mere tenacity? A stubborn hanging on to the breath in our body? Or is it achieving what our Maker had in mind when He made us in his image?

Why I write is because every army has a band it marches to. I am in the band. I believe the glory of my country and I am not afraid to sing it out aloud. It is a song I heard as a child and it reverberates in me. If the song dies, I die. And if I do not sing long and loud today, then when do I?

Open Letter to Mr Unnikrishnan

Dear Mr. Unnikrishnan,

You do not know me but I owe you a great debt. It sits on my shoulder like the body of a much loved brother, it shrouds my heart and casts a pall on all that I do….I know not how to repay you and that is my biggest agony. I see you as you speak to the media without a quaver in your voice, I see your wife with a broken heart and I am lashed with a pain that has no voice. Your son died saving my son and it weighs me down…speak to me and ask for something in return…I will give you my blood and the very marrow from my bone! Forgive me as I am the cause of your brilliant son fading…I did not see the enemy neither did I recognize it and when it attacked me with the ferocity of a thousand lions, I could only run and try to hide. I left the battle to your son and he has gone to the soldier’s paradise. He has done his duty and asked for nothing and I am cursed.

I am cursed as I lie at night wrestling with sleep as images of the dead and dying call out to me. I am cursed when I see the beautiful face of your son. I am cursed when I look at the face of grief that is your wife. I look at my sleeping son lying safe in his bed and I am overwhelmed. I cannot begin to imagine what courage it takes you to get up in the morning and face another day.

If it gives you any small iota of relief, let me tell you that it is the sacrifice of soldiers like your son which make me hold up my head high. It ignites a feeling of great self esteem and it is what makes me hopeful. If we have men like your son still left in India , then we will come into our own. These men show me a bright, shining vision of the future and make me a believer. Our fat, ugly, disillusioned sorry caricatures who are our politicians who suck out hope and glory and tarnish all that is good in our world fail in their task of destroying our faith. Men like Major Sandeep who live by their ideals unflinchingly are our saviours. We see them and recognize in them a pure spirit burning bright. They are our beacons…they shine forth like our star of hope and we can weather all storms.

Mr. Unnikrishnan, you are the exceedingly brave father of a lion among men. In your grief, know this that all Indians have seen him and his faith and his love for our country…in his death he has become immortal.

Death will come to us all. It will carry us away leaving only our loved ones sorrowful…your son’s funeral has made a whole nation grief-stricken. It has made all Indians say a prayer for him and his family. It has made us sit up and has lit a fire under us. He single-handedly silenced Mr. Raj Thackeray with his deed. This sorry politician’s career is over before it began…the so-called leader of the Marathi hides his face at home when a soldier rams home his point in so direct a fashion. Raj Thackeray was cowering beneath his bed when “his” Mumbai was burning and the men in uniform fought and gave up their lives for an India they unite and protect. No talk, no rhetoric just a heroic fight to the finish!

Mr. Unnikrishnan, if we have more men like your son then India WILL become a superpower.

I salute you and your family.

God bless you all.
An indebted Indian.

I have a dream for my India

Am writing about something very personal and close to my heart. We all have heard and seen the news and it has saddened us all. It has outraged me as it is no longer a terrorist attack but war. Pakistan has brought the war into our homes and we are still talking about a Hindu-Muslim divide. I believe we are standing on the brink of devastation with blind politicians and an illiterate populace which will see what is shown....we need to see the writing on the wall. Pakistan is at war with us. And we do not seem to realise the gravity of the situation. We send out our police to deal with a highly trained and brainwashed enemy...the three top cops just walked into bullets because they thought they were dealing with ordinary terrorists. Our lathi wielding, overweight police are no match. A case of letting the fox among chickens! What can the chickens do other than flutter and die amidst a lot of clucking!

Only our Armed Forces stand between us and disaster. And they are a taken for granted, ill equipped, demoralised lot. Perhaps they question their importance too. But I know that what saves me and mine is that 24 yr old boy from Haryana who is more afraid of being laughed at than he is of catching a bullet, the tall lad from Punjab who will do what his saab tells him, the diminutive Gorham who is bravery personified and their young idealistic officers who lead from the front. Why I say idealistic is that the Army offers nothing other than honour and duty...and the ones who respond to the call are the true patriots. There was a time we held patriots dear and acknowledged our debt to them...now idealism is another name for foolishness.

I remember the Kargil war and the unbelievable acts of bravery and raw courage it threw up....who can forget Capt. Batra's laughing bearded face and that immortal line "YEH DIL MANGE MORE!" And a 19 yr old Yogendra Singh Yadav with 3 bullets in him, climbing up a grueling 60 feet to reach and neutralize an enemy bunker and engage in combat…our only living PVC, Capt Vijayant Thapar whose farewell letter should be read by us aloud to our kids.... "I have no regrets...if I become a human again, I will again join the Army and fight for my nation....if you can, please come and see where the Army fought for your tomorrow....never forget the sacrifice of these men...Papa, you should feel proud....Live Life King Size!" He was all of 22. Capt Anuj Nayyar, whose heroism fuelled a movie and numerous TV serials…, this roll call of honour goes on and on. And it still brings forth tears from me…tears of pride and sorrow and personal loss. And a feeling that we cannot take these sacrifices for granted anymore. The least we can do is learn from them…our enemy has a face…it is not Muslim…it is Pakistan! Pakistanis do not see you and me as Hindu, Christian, Sikh, doctor, engineer, poet…we are their faceless enemy and to destroy us is the only game plan. Why can't we see what they have made so plain?

I will go and donate blood and I will be vigilant in public places. I vow to take note of abandoned stuff and report it…and I will sit up all night when I see my country under attack and hold my head in my hands when I see the dead, the dying and the injured…is it enough?

We should take a leaf out of Israel’s book…I am no politician nor am I interested in political correctness..What I see is that the world fried and baked and grilled the Jews…millions of them and NO ONE spoke up…no one saw anything! While smoke was billowing from the crematoriums and the stench of human flesh was all pervading, no one saw or heard or smelt anything…they were the unseen dead. So they decided that they had to take care of themselves and that history would never repeat itself for them again. How many of us will have to be dismembered, to die anonymously in battle without knowing that they were the enemy….how much more will we take…how much is enough…is a 100 dead and 200 injured less…tomorrow when the tally is 500 dead and 1000 injured, is it enough? When do we get up and say that one dead Indian is one too many! How many more of these endless, bloody harvests do we have to witness and endure?

There are mails which proudly declare that India has never invaded any country in her entire history…when will we circulate mails stating that we gouge out the eyes that look at India sideways and tear out limbs that rise against us! And when will our war-cry be "ENOUGH"…

When will we reach out for our golden future which lies just around the corner? I KNOW it does exist…I can Feel it! I can feel the throb of a mighty Indian awakening. There is so much of hope in me, I am a believer!

The question is when! When will my brethren see in each other an Indian! When will India become our motherland and not a 'developing' country one must flee from! When will our national anthem bring tears of pride in our eyes! When will a Raj Thackeray never dare verbalize his stinking politics for fear of a public lynching from his very own 'marathi manoos'! When will the politician become a patriot and a leader! When will we find ourselves!

I will end with some of my favorite martial quotes:-

Pain is temporary, pride is forever.

What doesn't kill you, strengthens you.
And its unofficial continuation…
What kills you, strengthens your mother!

Persistent defence, effective intimidation, battle we must when enemy is in sight.

Sarver Izzat o Iqbal
(Prestige and Honour Everywhere)

Balidanam veer lakshanam
Shastra se shakti.

My Israeli favorite:
In the place where the (tank) treads stop, there the border will be decided!

The hard we do today, the impossible we do tomorrow.

A personal favorite:
An army builds a nation.

No one wounds me with impunity.

He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot, will be victorious.

Sun Tzu, the famous Chinese General, said around 500 BC:

In peace prepare for war, in war prepare for peace. The art of war is of vital importance to the state. It is matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence under no circumstances can it be neglected.

If you know the enemy and know yourself, your victory will not stand in doubt; if you know Heaven and know Earth, you may make your victory complete.

If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.

If ignorant both of your enemy and yourself, you are certain to be in peril.

If fighting is sure to result in victory, then you must fight, even though the ruler forbid it; if fighting will not result is victory, then you must not fight, even at the ruler's bidding.
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May we all find our hidden warrior
May we always stand up for what we believe in
May India always prevail.
JAI HIND, JAI HIND KI SENA!