Mr Sekar anecdote may or may not be true as there is no direct evidence
available today except word to word spread. But a write up on him, by a
known one, though added it up as an anecdote, revealed the factual actions
of the Gen.
Kodandera Subayya Thimayya was one of three brothers born to a rich coffee
planter of Cheppudira clan in Madikeri in the district of Kodagu. He joined
Bishop Cotton School in Bangalore before enrolling at the Prince of Wales
Royal Indian Military College (RIMC) in Dehradun; he was one of six Indian
cadets later chosen to attend the Royal Military Academy at Sandhurst along
with Gen PN Thapar who would later succeed him as the Chief in 1961 and be
made a scapegoat for failures in 1962. Gen Thimayya's brothers too joined
the Army and his elder brother Ponnappa later joined the INA inspired by
Subhas Chandra Bose and his younger brother died in the first war in
Kashmir Thimayya graduated from Sandhurst in 1926 and received a commission
into the British Indian Army, going on to become the first Indian to
command an Infantry brigade: the 268th Indian Infantry Brigade—part of the
post-World War II British Commonwealth Occupation Force in Japan. He
received the British Distinguished Service Order for his service for the
British military during World War II.
General Thimayya was also chosen to lead the counter offensive in
Kashmir and headed the Jammu Kashmir force from April 1948 . The J&K force
was split as Srinagar and Jammu Division, Gen Thimayya headed the Srinagar
Div in May 1948 . Immediately he set about recapturing territories lost to
the marauders with his daring and dynamic brigade commanders - Brig LP Sen
of 161 brigade in Uri Sector, Brig Atal of Para Brigade tasked to recapture
Zojila and Harbaksh Singh in command of 163 in Handwara - Kupwara . They
were on a recapturing spree when Nehru decided to unilaterally declare
suspension of operations as the case was referred to the UN much to the
protestations of the army brass. Fortunately Pakistan didn't comply with
the UN resolution and General KS Thimayya allowing the re - commencement of
operations. This window of opportunity saw the consolidation of Ladakh with
the capture of Zojila Dras and Kargil. Leh a weakly held garrison was saved
by the sheer audacity and courage of Thimayya and Air Cmde Mehar Singh who
landed in a Dakota together for the first time in Leh paving the way for
beefing up troops that saved Leh from enemy hands
In another audacious move for capture of Zojila tanks of 7 Cavalry was
used in a direct firing role which completely destroyed the enemy morale
leading to its capture . Thus Ladakh was saved in the nick of time by
November 1948 before winter set in .Seeing the change in pace and tempo of
operations Pakistan quickly agreed to the terms of the UN resolution
calling for a ceasefire before it lost all other territories held by them.
The rest is history but what stood out is the sheer character and audacity
which made him a national hero for saving Kashmir .
Another anecdote that revolves around him is the detention of a
senior politician's son after he and some goons passed lewd remarks and
even tried to molest the wife of an Army officer of 5 JAT in Amritsar in
1959 . With the personal involvement of none less than that of the CM Of
Punjab the ripples of this action went up to Parliament. General Thimayya
was summoned for an explanation and his response that silenced the
opposition was “If we cannot defend the honour of our women, how can you
expect us to defend the honour of our country?”
His ability to project India’s honor was on full display during his
handling of the NNRC in Korea. The NNRC through CFI was responsible for
gathering non-repatriated prisoners into camps; that included nearly
170,000 prisoners held by UN forces who didn’t want to return to either
China or North Korea. In the face of Chinese demands for the forceful
repatriation of their soldiers, the UN and the CFI worked hard to explain
to each prisoner their rights and privileges; they could then choose to go
home or remain with the side that captured them. This called for
compassion, fairness, and neutrality on the part of the Indian Custodian
Force, who rendered yeoman service during the entire span of their mission
from September 1953 to March 1954. On several occasions, intricate
situations were resolved only because of the patience and tact of General
KS Thimayya and Major General SPP Thorat. They proved their mettle, earning
well-deserved praise for their command and for India. It was an unenviable
task; in the end only less than 100 who wished not to be repatriated to
either country came back to India once the NNRC and CFO concluded their
operations. A few Koreans chose to resettle in India, while others were
repatriated to Brazil. General Thimayya is not only an Indian military
hero, he is also a hero of the Korean War . It has been 66 years since the
end of the Korean war but even till today he is remembered by Koreans with
gratitude and affection. He was awarded a Padma Bhushan in 1954 for his
service in Korea. General Thimayya went on to become the COAS from
1957-1961. After his retirement the UN again requested for his service in
1964 to command UN troops operating on Cyprus in keeping with his
reputation of impartiality displayed in Korea . He would however die of a
massive heart attack on December 18, 1965 at the age of 59.
By Col ( Dr) Divakaran Padma Kumar Pillay, Shaurya Chakra, PhD is a
Research Fellow, with the Manohar Parrikar
NB: While talking about the top people who are available in all
nations, why don't we appreciate small timers who do a lot for this nation?
Defiance to reply on moral turpitude may lie with many virtuous people in
top or bottom; maybe your neighbor clerk might be the best officer or a
father or a man but we remember all of them not when they are alive. One
who has the strength in morality can defy injustice. Only thing is we do
not say then there yes you are right, but recall when no one is paying a
heartfelt tribute but.......The top brass and rich background may do many
things as subordinates execute all of them; but that subordinate name is
known by anyone? Do you remember the name of the Inspector of Central
excise and customs, who refused to be bribed, while returning back home,in
the evening , in T Nagar Usman Road, mowed down by a lorry and killed in
the 80s?ENTHARO MAHANUBHAVULU ANTHARIKKI VANDANAMU. KR IRS 25 7 23
On Tue, 25 Jul 2023 at 06:11, 'N Sekar' via iyer123 <
[email protected]> wrote:
>
> Year 1959
> Place Amritsar.
>
> Some Indian Army Officers & their wives went to Railway Station to see off
> one of their colleagues. Some goons made lewd remarks against the women &
> tried to molest them. The Army Officers chased the goons who took shelter
> in a nearby Cinema Theatre.
>
> The matter was reported to Commanding Officer Col Jyothi Mohan Sen. On
> learning about the incident, the Col ordered the Cinema Hall to be
> surrounded by troops. All the goons were dragged out, the leader of the
> goons was so heady and drunk with power; who was none other than the son
> of Chief Minister of Punjab, Pratap Singh Kairon, the close associate of
> the then PM, Jawahar Lal Nehru.
>
> All the goons were stripped to their underwear, paraded in the streets of
> Amritsar & later interned in the Cantonment. Next day, the Chief Minister
> became furious & tried to release his son from Indian Army's incarceration.
>
> You know what happened ?
>
> His vehicle was not allowed to go in to the Cantonment as VIP Vehicle, he
> was compelled to walk all the way to meet the Colonel. The infuriated Chief
> Minister, Kairon complained about the whole affair to PM, Jawaharlal Nehru.
>
> The perplexed, the so called Bharat Ratna Prime Minister Nehru instead of
> questioning his confidante Pratap Singh Kairon, sought explanation from the
> Army Chief, General Thimmayya for the conduct of his Officers.
>
> You know what was replied?
>
> If we cannot defend the honour of our women, how can you expect us to
> defend the honour of our Country ?"
>
> Nehru was dumbfounded. That was the Story of a brave Soldier who defied
> the Prime Minister.
>
> This article was contributed by Maj. Gen. Dhruv C Katoch in the magazine
> "Salute to the Indian soldier."* this needs to be shared .
>
> JAI HIND
> Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android
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>
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