"Main keshav ka panchjanya bhi,
gahan moun mein khoya hoon
Un beton ki yaad kahani,
likhte-likhte roya hoon...
Un aankhon ki do boondein se,
saaton sagar haare the
Jab mehndi wale un hathon ne,
mangalsutra utaare the.... "
I unrolled the newspaper in my hand and buried my face in it, pretending to be deep in thought and seeking a cogitative solitude amidst a crowd. Actually my eyes had been suddenly flooded with tears.. The newspaper had been rolled neatly earlier because I had been sitting in an auditorioum in Lucknow listening in rapt attention to a patriotic poet...
The words kept flowing evoking a patriot lurking deep inside and swelling my chest with a warrior's pride.... The tears slowly eased away.. I raised my head from the newspaper roll... Something made me steal a quick glance sideways. I saw an elderly gentleman sitting with an equally proud, martial air that had a whiff of deep pain... the corner of his eyes somewhat moist .. He later told me that he had lost his son in the Kargil war in 1999..
Not many of those reading this post would know the significance of 3rd of July.. Some would call it " India's Gay Day", some ... Actually for the average Indian nothing significant happened.. except perhaps the death anniversary of an odd soldier who had helped turn around a difficult situation in Kargil in 1999...
A warrior who had fought valiantly right until the last moment of his life when he was shot through his head- it seemed to the Pakistani cowards that the other parts of his body were impervious to the bullets they had shot at him as he has surged from bunker to bunker clearing each one out single-handedly in close quarter combat.. As he fell, he only had the time to say, " Don't spare 'em.. "
Thus runs the saga of Tiger Hill and "Pahalwan Pandey" in the annals of 1/11 Gorkas, the Indian Army, NDA, IMA, Sainik School Lucknow...
ADIOS, Capt. Manoj Pandey, 1/11 Gorkas........
Your country rememebrs you with pride in its heart... That characteristic valour in you inspire thousands even today......
