Saga of Indian soldiers

By Colonel Anil Bhat

On 13 November 2006, the eve of Armistice Day, Chairperson of India's United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Sonia Gandhi laid a wreath at the Menin Gate in Ieper (West Flanders), in remembrance of Indian soldiers who perished in Flanders fields serving with British Imperial forces. The Last Post was sounded at the monument to Indian soldiers nearby the Menin Gate, a remembrance arch in the city that was at the centre of many fierce battles during the Great War. It lists the names of thousands of British and Commonwealth soldiers who died.

There is a similar arch, well known in New Delhi as India Gate, with names of all Indian soldiers who died in WW I inscribed on it all over from top to bottom. Some time after the third India-Pakistan war of 1971, an eternal flame was lit with an upturned rifle on which a battle helmet is perched, to honour the unknown Indian soldier-Amar Jawan Jyoti- which is part of every visiting head of state or military leader's itinerary.

Indian Armed Forces celebrate 16th December as Vijay Diwas (victory day) to commemorate all Indian Armed Forces personnel, who laid down their lives in numerous wars and other actions since Independence. It is on this day in 1971 that 93,000 Pakistan Army ranks surrendered to Indian Army in Dhaka, just as its status changed from being the capital of erstwhile. East Pakistan to that of the newly liberated Bangladesh. Instituting 16th December as Vijay Diwas was sometime in the 1990s.

Whereas it is very simple for the average Indian to brush off the involvement of millions of Indian soldiers who fought under the British flag, what is significance is that their contribution in both World Wars (WW)I and II was invaluable for the Allies as it was very decisive. 110,000 Indian troops- almost the present strength of Indian Army- fought for the Allies in WW I.

A landmark decision during the war was Britain granting its highest award for gallantry in war- the Victoria Cross (VC)- to Indians. The first two of these coveted awards were given to Naik Darwan Singh Negi and Sepoy Khudadad Khan. Negi received his VC on 5 December, 1914, at St Omer, France, from King George V, who was there on a morale-boosting visit, while Khan, who was injured during his action at Hollebeke, Belgium, was awarded the VC by King George V at the Indian Convalescent Hospital, Hampshire, on 26 January, 1915.

In fact it was the strength, extent of participation and outstanding valour in WW I, which made the British construct the majestic India Gate in memory of thousands of Indian soldiers, who laid down their lives.

A paragraph culled from the regimental war diary of Hodson's House, a well-known Indian Army cavalry regiment, gives an idea of involvement of Indian troops in WW I : ‘‘Well before the commencement of WW I the regiment had distinguished itself in battle and won the battle honours in Abyssinia (1868), Afghanistan (1878-80) Suakin (1885), Punjab Frontier (1891) and Chitral (1896). During WW I the regiment saw action in France and the Middle East as mounted cavalry. The action at Cambrai on 30th November 1917 was a particularly gallant one. Besides Cambrai the regiment was also awarded battle honours in France and Flanders (1914-1918), Givenchy (1914), Somme, Bazentine and Flers Courcelette- (all three 1916). Further laurels were added during this war in the Middle-East with battle honours Mesopotamia (1916-18), Megiddo, Sharon, Damascus, Palestine and Khan Baghdadi - (all 1918).

The impact of these awards was telling indeed. While it opened the floodgate not only for ten more, totaling twelve Indian VCs in this war, but also the process of Indianisation, much demanded by the then Indian political leadership, resulting in 10 vacancies for suitable Indians at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, England. Continuous Indian political pressure impelled the British to establish the Indian Military Academy at Dehra Dun on October 1, 1932, for training future officers of the Indian Army, who amply proved their worth in WW II and continue to do so to date.

In WW II the Indian component of the Allies amounted to 250,000, of which 210,000 were of Indian Army. Of the 31 VCs awarded , 28 went to Indians. When the Golden Jubilee of this war's victory was celebrated in all Allied countries in 1995, the UK Government invited surviving VC recipients for the celebrations. Only two were healthy enough to avail the invitation.

Affiliations and bonds between British veterans, who served in Indian regiments till Independence continued unabated over the decades despite the strains and tensions of the relationship between the two countries. Not only British officers, but in many cases, even their family members of deceased officers have been visiting their old Indian regiments for re-unions to commemorate battles fought by them in both WWs I and II. October and November are months in which a number of old Indian regiments celebrate battle honour days of battles won in Europe.

Flanders and Cambrai are areas in which cavalry regiments like 4th Horse (Hodson's Horse), 18th Light Cavalry (which still has a Kaimkhani Muslim squadron) were Indian Cavalry Regiments which fought dismounted actions in the trench-locked and slushy battlefields with as much ferocity as they did mounted on horseback. In 1982, when Hodson's Horse celebrated its 125th anniversary, the group of five British officers of this regiment who attended the re-union-some with their wives and children-were headed by Colonel Walter Shoolbred, the last British Commanding Officer, well into his eighties, who died a year later. Yet, at that age, on a cold evening in Jalandhar Cantonment, attending a ‘bara khana’ with troops, when offered whisky and western food, shot back saying ‘‘bara khana means rum, pakoras, curries and rotis and whatever else all ranks are eating’’. And that is exactly what he imbibed on that evening, much to everyone's surprise.

Independent India's Armed Forces, while operating with their foreign counterparts in many United Nations missions, made a mark in the world forum of armies by earning high regard for professionalism - in this case a unique mix of courage and compassion. But India's first lesson learnt with Independence was that there was a price to be paid continuously and for six decades to date of being honed enough (even if not equipped enough) to keep fighting effectively in the highest, harshest, coldest and hottest of regions to prevent any cartographic changes of India's frontiers- to put it mildly.

That was not all. Thanks to externally created internal security problems, the Indian Army has been ‘managing’ insurgencies, most of which degenerated into terrorism-again externally linked. In Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), the proxy war begun by Pakistan's military establishment exporting terrorist groups spread countrywide despite a peace process between India and Pakistan initiated since early 2004. Large numbers of Indian Army and security forces personnel have lost their lives, apart from many innocent civilians. Army units also commemorate the sacrifices of these soldiers, many of who have been accorded high gallantry awards, besides serving ranks too. While September to December is the period when Indian Armed Forces commemorate battle honour days covering the 1947-48, 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistan wars and the Chinese aggression of 1962 units which received citations for actions against terrorism in J&K since the late 1980s, commemorate them all the year round. The list of casualties in this involvement continues to swell, despite the peace process since early 2004 after which the only good news was that the two armies ceased fire, but export of terrorism by Pakistan's military establishment has continued unabated.

The 2006 year ending period of commemorating sacrifices by security personnel was unprecendentedly marred by controversy about the 13th December 2001 attack on Indian Parliament by Pakistan-based terrorists. Five years later, as one of the main accused, Mohammad Afzal's death sentence awaits confirmation from the President of India. The next of kin of security personnel who died in this attack, announced that they would return the gallantry medals awarded to them, if the sentence is not implemented or reduced and eventually did so on the due date. The Union Home Minister's recent statement that the sentence may take as much as seven years to be decided may cast its shadow on the forthcoming investiture ceremonies due on Republic Day, 2007. PTI Feature

(Col Anil Bhat writes on defence issues)