The first Indian troops enroute to Srinagar in Oct 1947
by Lt Col Mukhtiar Singh
October 27, is very close to the hearts of Kashmiris. The day is also
significant for Indian Army, as it marked its first call to arms after
Partition and Independence. In the historic defence of Srinagar, the first
contingent of Indian Infantry, 1 Sikh landed at Srinagar airport and saved it
from falling into the hands of the marauding tribesmen sent by Pakistan. In
this fight, the people of Jammu and Kashmir stood shoulder to shoulder with the
soldiers and made supreme sacrifices.
After attaining Independence, the State of Jammu and Kashimir did not accede to
the rest of India. It was an independent province. This encouraged Pakistanis
to usurp this state owing to its muslim predominant population. The Pakisthani
attack commenced on October 21/22, 1947, in the Muzzaffarabad-Uri sector, after
the two Muslim companies of 4 Jammu and Kashmir Infantry, defending
Muzzaffarabad, had deserted to join the invaders. Muzzaffarabad, thus, fell
without a fight.
The ruler of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharaja Hari Singh had not exercised the
option to join either of the two dominions fearing the consequences. Attack on
Muzzaffarabad forced the Maharaja to seek India's help to save his people, who
were being brutally raped, killed and looted by the Pakistan raiders. He agreed
to the accession of his state to India to rescue his people from the raiders.
After coming to know the fall of Muzzaffarabad, Maharaja Hari Singh deputed
Brig Rajinder Singh and a small force of 100 men to proceed towards Uri. As
soon as the alarming reports of the raiders' progress towards Uri reached
Srinagar, the Brigadier was ordered by the Maharaja to take personal command of
the Uri sector. On October 23, the first encounter took place at Garhi where he
inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy. This bold and determined action of the
Brigadier alerted the enemy, which forced him to delay his advance to Uri.
Maharaja Hari Singh, realising the gravity of the situation, issued the
historic order to Brig Rajinder Singh, to hold the enemy at Uri at all costs
and to the last man. Accordingly, Brig Rajinder Singh held out steadfastly even
at the cost of sacrificing his life. Thus, he saved Uri and the entire state
from falling into the hands of the raiders. He is, therefore, truly called the
saviour of Jammu and Kashmir, for which he was awarded the first ever gallantry
award of independent India, Maha Vir Chakra, posthumously.
Brig Singh's action delayed the enemy long enough to enable Maharaja to
complete accession proceedings. It also enabled the Indian Army to mobilise the
units to fly to Srinagar after the accession was over.
A Dakota aircraft carrying the first Indian Army contingent, comprising one
company of 1 Sikh landed on the dusty airstrip of Badgam in Srinagar at 9.30 AM
on October 27. At this stage, no one was sure about the state of affairs in the
Valley. The Commanding Officer, 1 Sikh had orders to turn back and land at
Jammu if the Srinagar airfield was found to be occupied by hostile forces.
Fortune favoured the brave and 1 Sikh landed safely without a mishap. On this
day, Dakotas of the Indian Air force undertook as many as 30 sorties to airlift
1 Sikh from New Delhi.
The 161 Infantry Brigade, which was constituted at Srinagar airfield on October
29, fought the battle for liberation of Kashmir. By the third week of December,
the only land route into Valley over the Banihal Pass was snow bound and the
brigade had to fight for next few months, completely isolated from the rest of
the Indian Army.
There is no other campaign in military history, in which an infantry brigade,
hurriedly assembled in bits and pieces with units and subunits, having their
leaders removed and replaced by others who were strangers to the men and
without full complement of weapons, had been pitch, forked into a serious
battle.
During the operation, Indian Army lost 76 officers, 31 JCOs and 996 other
ranks. The wounded totalled 3152 including 81 officers and 107 JCOs. In
addition to these casualties, Jammu and Kashmir State Forces lost approximately
1990 officers and men. The small Royal Indian Air Force (RIAF) lost 32
personnel, including nine officers. The enemy casualties were definitely many
times more than that of Indian Army. By one estimate, the enemy suffered 20,000
casualties, including 6000 killed. The gallantry and skill of all ranks of the
Indian Army are amply borne out in the various accounts of these operations.
The Army won five Param Vir Chakra, 47 Maha Vir Chakra and around 280 Vir
Chakra.
Along with the men-in-uniform, civilians played a crucial role in liberating
the Valley. Very few know that a washerman, Ram Chander, won Maha Vir Chakra
for rescuing an officer wounded during an ambush and for shooting down several
enemy troops in the process. It was this Indian spirit and valour that saved
the Valley. The dedication and skill of the civilian pilots who flew to
Srinagar in October 1947 matched with their counterparts in the Royal Indian
Air Force. Thirtythree civil Dakotas were used for sorties, many of them even
did a double trip to Srinagar on a single day.
On the night of October 27, when the savage raiders descended on Baramulla to
pillage and plunder, St Joseph's Convent also bore the brunt of the attack. The
brutally wounded and ailing personnel remaining in the hospital were evacuated
to Rawalpindi by Miss Mumtaz Shah Nawaz, a member of the Pakistan Women's
Voluntary Service and her assistants.
The legendary figure Mohammed Maqhool Sherwani played a pivotal role when the
tribals of North-West Frontier ravaged the border town of Baramulla. Sherwani
and his supporters had misled the enemy about the presence of Indian Army,
which gave precious time to prepare the battleground at Shalateing. Sherwani
was caught, nailed to a post through the forehead and chest and was brutally
killed by a volley of 14 bullets.
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