Arun Khetarpal PVC: Tribute to a friend

‘If you cannot recognize leopard even now, you deserve to be eaten.’

Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few. -Winston Churchill

I first met Arun Khetarpal in 1968 at Mathura before joining NDA – National Defense Academy. It was at the army swimming pool in the cantonment where I was struggling to learn swimming and he was an accomplished swimmer- easily and effortlessly swimming across the pool with ‘Butterfly stroke’ a very difficult and tiring style. He had come for spending term break from NDA with his parents where his father Brigadier Khetarpal was posted. He being from 38th NDA course was already a cadet at the academy which he had joined in middle of 1967. This was a very brief meeting but I was impressed by his good looks and personality. I always thought he resembled Elvis Presly a bit.

He was from Foxtrot squadron and as luck would have it, I also joined NDA in 1968 exactly after one year and was allotted Foxtrot squadron. He being in third term and I was a first termer- a fresher.

Arun Khetarpal was from Lawrence school Sanawar- a prestigious school at that. He was not only good at studies but was an accomplished sports man. Very polite and well-mannered he was a true gentleman. He used to play Saxophone and since I was also into playing musical instruments- percussions- we hit off well. I know saxophone is a difficult instrument to play but he remained at it and practiced hard to improve his performance. He was committed to his training and in the sixth term was appointed as SCC- Squadron Cadet Captain- which he of course deserved.

He joined armoured corps and was commissioned into 17 Poona Horse. Poona horse was Raised at Poona (now Pune) on 15 July 1817.

War to liberate East Pakistan from atrocities of West Pakistan

As the war began on the eastern front, Pakistan decided to open up the western sector to divert Indian troops from the Eastern front which is now Bangladesh and prolong the war. Shakargarh bulge was a key strategic area for India as it comprised road links between Jammu and Indian Punjab. Therefore, securing the region was crucial for India as Pakistan had a military base nearby in Sialkot and therefore could have easily launched a massive invasion of the Shakargarh region, cutting Jammu and Kashmir from the rest of India.

In addition, Shakargarh was not easily defensible it was also called "a defender's nightmare" because unlike in other places in Punjab, Shakargarh does not have any serious water obstacles, nor boggy patches, and is relatively flat giving a free run to the enemy.

While the Indian division was bogged down as the engineers had not cleared all the mines, 2nd Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal of the 17th Poona Horse regiment, in a daring counter-attack, led his 3 tanks into the minefield area. A fierce tank battle ensued where a Pakistani tank was taken down. After suffering initial setbacks, the 8th Armoured Brigade of the Pakistan Army was called in to help the Pakistani resistance in the area. However, the Indian Army continued the assault and Lt. Arun Khetarpal with his 2 remaining tanks fought off and destroyed 10 tanks before he was killed in action.

Arun Khetarpal destroyed 10 enemy tanks, including four that he destroyed personally. He was severely wounded and ordered to pull back, but he refused and continued to fight. He was eventually killed when an enemy shell hit his tank.

Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal's last words were, "No, Sir, I will not abandon my tank. My main gun is still working and I will get these bastards". He said this over the radio to a superior officer who ordered him to abandon his burning tank during the tank Battle.

For displaying the most conspicuous bravery and for making the supreme sacrifice, Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal was awarded the Param Vir Chakra (Posthumous).

Arun Khetarpal's Centurion tank was called Famagusta Jx 202. It was restored after the war and is presently preserved in the Armoured Corps Centre and School in Ahmednagar.

Whether you fought on the eastern front or the western- the root cause of the 1971 war was East Pakistan now Bangladesh. Let us not try to normalize or trivialise the idea by taking a high moral ground.

As in the movie ‘Von Ryn’s Express’ Frank Sinatra is shot and his words are repeated – even if one escapes, it is a victory!

Was it worth it?

Vijay Diwas, is celebrated on December 16, which marks the historic day when Pakistan’s forces, led by Lieutenant General AA Khan Niazi, surrendered to Indian commander Lieutenant General Jagjit Singh Aurora, bringing an end to their reign and paving the way for Bangladesh’s birth.

“Ehsan Faramosh’ means being down right ungrateful and this is what Bangladesh under Yunus is doing today. Bangladesh's New leadership is trying to Erase India’s Role In 1971 Liberation, insisting the 1971 victory was all Bangladesh’s doing, and India was just along for the ride.

Among the most vocal were Yunus’ law advisor Asif Nazrul, Hasnat Abdullah, the country’s most dedicated India-basher, and a few members of Khaleda Zia’s BNP, all furiously claiming that India played no significant role in Bangladesh’s liberation. One student leader even went as far as calling PM Modi’s words on Vijay Divas Day a “direct threat” to Bangladesh’s independence. Denying the help of the nation that actually made it possible is the most horrible sin and here the last words of Khetarpal can be aptly used …"No, Sir, I will not abandon my tank. My main gun is still working and I will get these bastards".

This actually shows the mentality of these people- once a back stabber is always a back stabber! Leopard never changes its spots. It is a DNA problem with them.

They are ungrateful even to their liberator within- Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Former President of Bangladesh as they pulled down his statue and any of his pictures and name from the entire nation. What kind of humans are they- are they even humans? One wonders.

Beware, these guys can come at you too. They will show no mercy. ‘Jo apno ke nahi ho sake who apke kya hongey’- history tells you that. ‘Josh nahi hosh bhee chahiye’.

“No dumb bastard ever won a war by going out and dying for his country. He won it by making some other dumb bastard die for his country.”― George S. Patton Jr.

But can we learn now?

Let me quote the oft quoted from history – ‘Once taken into captivity, Mohammad Ghori begged him to be released. Prithviraj's ministers saw through his ploy and strictly advised him against it. But being the benevolent king Prithviraj was, he released Ghori. This kind gesture turned out to be the biggest mistake in the life of Prithviraj Chauhan.’

Only thing different this time is back stabber is not Muhammad Ghori but it is Muhammad Yunus Chief Adviser of Bangladesh. It is not Indira Gandhi- it is Narendra Modi.

Wish we had such leadership back then- we would have never returned an inch of conquered land (like Israel) and bargained hard to have permanently shackled Pakistan- as late Tariq Fateh said – you should have demilitarized Pakistan- like Germany- and defanged it forever. We would have saved so much pain to Kashmir- aaj Hindustan kuch aur he hota.

George Santayana said “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it".

Saab kuch luta ke hosh main aye to kya hua. Saab kuch seekha hamne na seekhee hoshiari……

We gave back 93000 Pakistani captured soldiers to Pakistan on a platter. We also returned captured land! The surrender was the largest military surrender after World War II. We lost around 4000 soldiers- majority were Hindus to save Bangladeshi Muslims and today they are killing Hindus. Your blood boils- no.

Indian forces captured around 15,010 km2 of land in the West but returned it in the 1972 Simla Agreement as a gesture of goodwill. What good was goodwill?

We always lost out big for scoring brownie points- they have costed us dearly.

India has put some stops in place. Bangladesh needs power and food from India- today this is not India of 1971 but one with strong leadership and strong economy.

Even cricket match is not being played with Pakistan on their soil- it is different India. We need to redeem what we lost; Life of Arun Khetarpal cannot be taken as a collateral damage- sorry.

‘When you repeat a mistake, it is not a mistake anymore: it's a decision.’ - Paulo Coelho

No more goodwill - enough is enough.

Of course It is going to die on its own- Bangladesh.

They are out of control fanatics, prepared to die for God alone knows what. A well developing nation has shot itself in the foot.

Even in a boxing bout, you feel the pain much after the bout is over- here bout is still on. But referee should not suffer!

Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.- Voltaire