1896) Brig. Manjit Singh (MVC), Force Commander of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) Operations (1987-1990), Sri Lanka:
We went to see the National War Memorial in Pune, in December 2018, with some friends who were visiting us in Pune. As we went around I remembered the sacrifices of our young men in the defence of our country. I have read extensively about most of the Defence Operations, but every time I read about or see pictures or visit a museum, it is a moving experience all over again.
During our visit, we came across an exhibit room, which I had somehow missed on my previous visit. There it was – this section describing “Operation Pawan” (the IPKF Operations in Sri Lanka 1987) and there was this bust of Brig. Manjeet Singh , MVC.
I recalled that Brig. Manjeet Singh MVC, when he was posted at Lucknow became a dear friend. One night he had dinner with us. Two days later, we were surprised to see him briefing the news media on the IPKF Operations for the capture the Jaffna Fort and rescue stranded Army personnel (paratroopers among them). Apparently, the Army Chief General Sundarji had called him personally and wanted him to take command of the troops who were trying to make headway in LTTE held territories.
The task was arduous. LTTE snipers were targeting Army officers and radio-men. Apparently, they were successful in setting up ambushes, as they could easily decipher Indian Army radio communications. In addition, there were intensive anti-personnel mine-fields. Brig. Manjeet Singh through meticulous planning and sheer grit of his troops overcame LTTE resistance in several positions and broke their backbone. The cost was tremendous. Not only did the Indian forces lose a lot of good soldiers but the progress made was slow and difficult, as the LTTE was well entrenched everywhere.
Brig. Manjeet Singh was very distressed at losing a lot of his boys. His wife who was an American citizen also saw him on TV and called him to find out if he was safe.
Brig Manjit Singh was awarded the Maha Veer Chakra (MVC) for his exceptional bravery in leading his troops from the front.
Brig. Manjit Singh
The citation for his award of MVC details in brief the courage shown by him in battle for Jaffna read -
“Brigadier Manjit Singh while commanding an Infantry Brigade as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force, was tasked to establish a link-up with Jaffna Fort, along Western Pincer in the face of all-out efforts by the militants to thwart their advance.
Brigadier Manjit Singh himself assumed charge of the leading elements. He broke through the desperate cordon of the militants and successfully established a link-up with PARA Commandos operating from Jaffna Fort. His leadership and demonstration of personal valour motivated his command to push back the enemy. Throughout the operation, Brigadier Manjit Singh displayed conspicuous courage and valiant leadership”.
After being passed over for promotion to the rank of Major General, the mercurial tempered Brig Singh did not stay on in the Army and took premature retirement.
Brig. Manjit Singh left the Indian Army shortly thereafter and migrated to the USA. He later settled on his farm in Rahon, near Nawahshahar, where he spent the remainig years of his life peacefully. He passed away in January 2020, after a brief illness.
His exploits and leading his troops from the front has been etched in my memory forever.
An old Photograph also placed in the Hall of Honour at the Museum after the Jaffna Operations titled - "Force Commander with gallant troops"
Seeing his bust in the Hall of Honour in the museum, revived three decades old memories for me.
More on the push to capture Jaffna Fort:
A stronghold of the LTTE, the battle to wrest Jaffna exacted a high toll on the units of 41 Infantry Brigade, which was commanded by Brig Singh.
Brig Singh’s push towards Jaffna later came in for some opposition from his former subordinates as well former divisional commander who did not appreciate the hard handed methods employed by him in the command of his brigade.
He ended up sacking his Deputy Commander, Brigade Major, OC Brigade Signal Company and two battalion commanding officers.
However, he never regretted his decisions and had scathing comments to make about performance of several officers under his command. An outspoken officer, Brig Singh’s brusque manner tolerated few mistakes.
An alumnus of Khalsa College, Amritsar, Brig Singh had originally been commissioned in the Mahar Regiment.
However, years later he was shifted to Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry (JAK LI), an order which he bitterly resented at the time.
True to his nature he had had a ‘run in’ with the then Colonel of the Mahar Regiment, Lt Gen KV Krishna Rao, who was at the time GOC-in-C Western Command and later the Army Chief.
Brig BK Unnikrishnan of the Corps of Signals, who was commanding a sub unit in Jaffna fort during the battle, has described the moment when Brig Singh reached the fort fighting through LTTE strongpoints. The account below gives an idea of how pitched the battle was:
“The Brigade had faced very stiff opposition on its way; it was stalled at many places initially and had to stop the advance mid-way due to ambushes and heavy fire. It suffered heavy casualties. However Manjit took a bold decision to move forward with a small group comprising his GSO 3 and two infantry companies. It was a daring move and despite interference from the LTTE, Manjit managed to reach the Fort at night with a few dead bodies and several injured soldiers. Lt Col TPS Brar, CO, 1 MLI received him and took him to the Ops Room. I was present there along with Maj Shankar Murthy, my 2IC. Manjit and I had known each other very well , but I found his combat dress was full of blood of enemy soldiers and he was in a terrible state of mind”.
In a statement to LA Times, who’s correspondent visited Jaffna after its capture, Brig Singh said of LTTE, “They were stopping us at every place. Every time they checked us, we lost a lot of men. When we tried to move our vehicles, we were hit with land mines.”
Links:
Links to posts on Army Post Office (APO) issues:
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12) 102 (VC) Engineer Regiment: Celebrating the Golden Jubilee of its raising in 1965: A Special Cover issued by 99 APO on 28.12.2016
13) 130 Air Defence Regiment: Golden Jubilee Celebrations: A Special Cover issued by 56 APO commemorating the occasion on 28.01.2017
14) 3rd Battalion The Sikh Regiment: Centennial of the Battle of Hai fought on 01.02.1917 during WW I : A Special Cover issued by 56 APO on 01.02.2017
15) 27 Air Defence Missile Regiment (Amritsar Airfield): Platinum Jubilee Celebrations (75 Years) A Special Cover brought out by 56 APO on 04.02.2017
16) 237 Engineer Regiment : Golden Jubilee Celebrations ( 50 Years of Glorious Service). A Special Cover brought out by 99 APO on 11.02.2017
17) 26th Battalion The Madras Regiment: Golden Jubilee (1967-2017): A Special Cover brought out by 56 APO on 16.02.2017
18) Tri Services Veterans: Inaugural Armed Forces Veterans day: 14.01.2017: A Special Cover issued by 56 APO on 14.01.2017:
19) 79 Medium Regiment: Golden Jubilee Celebrations (1967-2017): A Special Cover brought out by 56 APO on 01.03.2017:
28) Army Medical Corps: 12th Reunion & 54th Biennial (22-24.03.2017): A Special Cover issued by the 56 APO on 23.03.2017
29) No. 29, Squadron, Indian Air Force (IAF): (SCORPIOS): 60 Glorious years (1958-2018): A Special Cover brought out by 56 APO (Army Post Office) on 18.10.2018
30) No. 35 Squadron Indian Air Force (IAF): (RAPIERS): 60 Years of Rapiers (1958-2018)- "Armed to strike fast": A Special Cover brought out by 56 APO (Army Post Office) on 16.10.2018
31) The Deccan Horse: Centenary Celebrations of the Jordan Valley Day (1918-2018): A Special Cover brought out by 56 APO (Army Post Office) on 03.11.2018
32) College of Military Engineering, Pune: Platinum Jubilee Celebrations (28.09.2018):A Special Postal Cover brought out by India Post , 56 APO (Army Post Office) on 29.08.2018
33) 3rd Battalion The Rajputana Rifles: Bicentenary Celebrations (1818-2018): A Special Postal Cover brought out by India Post, 56 APO (Army Post Office) on 03.11.2018
34) 61 Cavalry: "Centenary of the Battle of Haifa (1918-2018)": A Special Postal Cover brought out by India Post (56 APO-Army Post Office) on 22.09.2018
35) 40 Field Regiment (Asal Uttar): Platinum Jubilee Celebration (1943-2018): A Special Postal Cover brought out by India Post (56 APO) on 07.09.2018
36) 131 Air Defence Regiment: Golden Jubilee Celebration (1968-2018): A Special Postal Cover brought out by India Post (56 APO) on 26.09.2018
37) 125 SATA (Surveillance And Target Acquisition) Regiment: Diamond Jubilee Celebration (1958-2018): A Special Cover brought out by India Post - 56 (APO) on 03.11.2018
38) 22nd Battalion: The Rajput Regiment: Golden Jubilee Celebration (1966-2018): A Special Postal Cover brought out by India Post (56 APO) on 01.10.2018
3) The Scinde Horse: A Commemorative Stamp of 500 Paise or Rs.5/- issued by India Post on 16.11.2012
4) Aero India 2015: Asia's Premier Air Show: A set of 10 Post cards issued by Karnataka Postal Circle, India Post in 2015.
5) International Fleet Review - 2016 (IFR - 16) held at Vishakhapatnam from 04.02.16 to 08.02.16: Commemorative Postage stamps issued by India Post
6) Bicentenary of the Raising of the Poona Horse Regiment (July 1817 - July 2017): A Commemorative 500 Paise or Rs.5/- stamp issued by India Post on 11.02.2017
7) India's First International Fleet review held on 18.02.2001 at Mumbai
8) Commemorating the Bicentenary of the Raising Day of the First and Third Gorkha Rifles: Commemorative stamps issued by India Post.
17) Western Naval Command (WNC) Golden Jubilee Celebrations (1968-2018): A Special Postal Cover brought out by the Maharashtra Postal Circle of India Post on 12.12.2018
18) National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Pune: 70 Glorious Years: A Special Cover brought out by Maharashtra Postal Circle of India Post commemorating the milestone: Special Cover issue date: 16.01.2019
19) Marshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh DFC (15.04.1919-16.09.2019): A 500 Paise (or Rs.5/-) postage stamp brought out in his honour by India Post on 09.10.2019
20) 4th Battalion (Outram's) The Rajputana Rifles: 200th Anniversary Celebrations (1820-2020): A Postage stamp of 500 Paise (or Rs.5/-) brought out by India Post commemorating the milestone: Date of Stamp issue: 12.02.2020
Santosh Khanna has commented:
ReplyDelete"Gr8 information. Every time when you visit such museum your knowledge will increase. Still I suggest stay at home and be safe."
Thank you, Khanna sahab. This was a visit in 2018, much before the virus had struck. In 2020. I read in a Chandigarh newspaper that Brig Singh has passed away in 01/2020. I fished out old photos to write this post
DeleteRajan Trikha has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very interesting and informative 👍👍"
Thank you, Trikha sahab
DeleteRsanker Sharma has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very nice. Great post."
Thank you, Sharma sahab. I had his photos from the War Memorial Museum with me for the past few years, but somehow felt like writing this post on him today.
DeleteLaxman Sawant has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very much informative."
Thank you, Laxman.
DeleteThat was quite a touching account of a brave soldier's life during war. I vividly remember our museum visit and the soldier on duty who was so pleased you knew Brig. Singh.
ReplyDeleteIt was indeed a memorable trip, to the museum which took us back decades in time.
DeleteVinod Khurana has commented:
ReplyDelete"Great informative post. Salute to such brave hearts. Jai Hind."
He was a great soldier and inspirational commander. His men followed him anywhere.
DeleteVikram Bhatnagar has commented:
ReplyDelete"A man of true grit, iron bodied and, endowed with a will of steel! 💪"
He was, indeed. When the IPKF failed to make much headway, General Sundarji sent out an SOS to him .
DeleteHis boys joined the the IPKF deployment at a day's notice. On the lighter side, the situation for the para commandos was so desperate that the army chief promised to send him a case of the finest whisky, if he could rescue the embattled Indian paratroopers. This promise was never fulfilled, as Brig Singh was very distraught at the loss of his good soldiers in this operation.
Vikram Bhatnagar has further commented:
Delete"You are indeed very lucky to have had him as a friend! 😇."
Radhakrishnan Thampy has commented:
ReplyDelete"Thanks for sharing. Best wishes 🌹"
Thank you so much for visiting this post, Thampy.
DeleteRajendrasinh Mohite has commented:
ReplyDelete"Very interesting information."
Thank you so much, Sir.
DeleteAmin Madhani has commented:
ReplyDelete"It’s a pleasure to read about the valiant efforts of our men in uniform. Also SBI has given us an opportunity to meet great people from various walks of lIfe."
True, sir. The Indian Armed Forces have many such tales of valour and bravery & Brig. Singh's feats rank among the very best.
Delete