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जब पाकिस्तान ने छंब सेक्टर में हमला किया तो जनरल चौधरी चाहते थे कि पाकिस्तान का सामना अख़नूर से आगे बढ़ कर किया जाए.

लेकिन जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह ने चौधरी से कहा कि आप सरकार से मुझे अंतरराष्ट्रीय सीमा पार कर लाहौर की तरफ़ बढ़ने की अनुमति दिलवाइए.

जनरल चौधरी और जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह का वो शो डाउन

जनरल चौधरी कुछ हिचकिचा रहे थे. लेकिन जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह ने इस पर ज़ोर देते हुए कहा कि अगर आप सरकार से ये बात नहीं कह सकते तो मुझे प्रधानमंत्री लाल बहादुर शास्त्री से मिलने की अनुमति दीजिए.

अंतत: उन्हें 3 सितंबर को पंजाब में बढ़ने की अनुमति मिली.

हरबख़्श सिंह अपनी आत्मकथा ‘इन द लाइन ऑफ़ ड्यूटी’ में लिखते हैं, “इस बीच पाकिस्तान को ये आभास देने के लिए कि हम अख़नूर पर उसके हमले का जवाब देने जा रहे हैं, मैंने अपने इंजीनियरों को पठानकोट-अख़नूर सड़क की मरम्मत करने और जम्मू तवी के ऊपर के पुल को और मज़बूत करने के आदेश दिए.”

“इसका पाकिस्तान पर क्या असर पड़ा मैं कह नहीं सकता, लेकिन इतना ज़रूर कह सकता हूँ कि तीन दिन बाद जब हमने लाहौर की तरफ़ मार्च शुरू किया तो वो आश्चर्यचकित रह गए.”

अपनी आत्मकथा ‘इन द लाइन ऑफ़ ड्यूटी’ में हरबख़्श सिंह लिखते हैं, “नौ सितंबर की रात ढाई बजे सेनाध्यक्ष ने मुझे फ़ोन मिलाया. उनका कहना था कि भारतीय सेना को पाकिस्तानी हमले से अलग-थलग होने से बचाने के लिए मुझे अपनी सेना को ब्यास नदी के पीछे ले आना चाहिए.”

“इसका मतलब था पंजाब के बहुत बड़े भूभाग, जिसमें अमृतसर और गुरदासपुर के ज़िले थे, ख़ाली कर देना. मेरी नज़र में भारतीय सेना के लिए ये 1962 के चीन हमले से भी बुरा झटका होता.”

जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह ने ये आदेश मानने से इंकार कर दिया.

वो अपनी आत्मकथा में लिखते हैं, “मैंने जनरल चौधरी से कहा कि चूँकि ये एक रणनीतिक आदेश है, इसलिए उन्हें इसे युद्ध भूमि में ही आकर देना होगा, वर्ना आप मुझे लिखित आदेश दीजिए. तय हुआ कि वो मुझसे अंबाला में मिलेंगे. मुझे ये देखकर आश्चर्य हुआ कि जनरल चौधरी के जहाज़ के साथ एक एस्कॉर्ट जहाज़ भी था.”

“मैंने स्टेशन कमांडर से उसी समय कहा कि सीमा पर लड़ रहे हमारे सैनिकों को रोज़ इस तरह के विमानों की दरकार होती है. मैं और चीफ़ सीधे ऑपरेशन रूम में गए जहाँ हम दोनों के बीच काफ़ी गर्मागर्मी हुई.”

“एक समय वो इतने उत्तेजित हो गए कि मुझे कहना पड़ा कि आपके लिए मेस से बियर मंगवाऊँ? लेकिन मैंने उन्हें ये स्पष्ट कर दिया कि अगर वो कोई रणनीतिक आदेश देना चाहते हैं तो उन्हें मेरे साथ फ़्रंट पर आना होगा और तब मैं तय करूंगा कि मैं उस आदेश का पालन करूँगा या नहीं.”

मेजर जनरल पलित भी लिखते हैं, “हरबख़्श सिंह ने जनरल चौधरी से कहा कि वो इतने महत्वपूर्ण मसले पर मौखिक आदेश का पालन नहीं करेंगे. इसके लिए आपको मुझे लिखित आदेश देने होंगे. लिखित आदेश कभी नहीं आए. कुछ ही घंटों में हालात बदल गए जब खेमकरण में भारत के सेंचूरियन टैंकों ने अपने से कहीं बेहतर पैटन टैंकों को धूल चटा दी.”

सामरिक मामलों के एक और विशेषज्ञ के. सुब्रमण्यम ने भी लिखा है कि जनरल चौधरी ने प्रधानमंत्री शास्त्री से भी ब्यास नदी के पीछे हटने की अनुमति माँगी थी, लेकिन उन्होंने इसकी इजाज़त नहीं दी.

टीकाकार इंदर मल्होत्रा और कुलदीप नैयर ने भी बीबीसी को बताया कि अगर चौधरी की चली होती तो भारत को बहुत बड़े हिस्से से पीछे हटना पड़ता.

जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह की बेटी हरमाला गुप्ता याद करती हैं कि लड़ाई के दौरान उन्होंने उन्हें घर पर बहुत कम देखा. वो आते भी थे तो हमेशा अपने कमरे में अपने कमांडरों के साथ टेलीफ़ोन पर बात करते रहते थे ये जानने के लिए कि युद्ध में क्या हो रहा है.

कभी-कभी कमरे से बाहर निकलते थे लेकिन हमें कुछ भी नही बताते थे कि लड़ाई में क्या हो रहा है. हम बस अनुमान लगा सकते थे कि सब कुछ ठीक ही चल रहा है.

उनके एडीसी रहे कैप्टन अमरेंदर सिंह कहते हैं कि वो बहादुरी के हर काम को सराहते थे, लेकिन पेशेवर ग़लती को वो कभी भी माफ़ नहीं करते थे.

1965 में भी जब मेजर जनरल निरंजन प्रसाद आशानुरूप काम नहीं कर पाए तो बीच लड़ाई में भी वो उनको हटाने से नहीं हिचके. उसी तरह जब मेजर जनरल चोपड़ा ने अख़नूर के मोर्चे पर अकुशलता दिखाई तो उन्हें भी हटाने में उन्हें कोई संकोच नहीं हुआ.

उस ज़माने में जनरल चौधरी के स्पेशल असिस्टेंट रहे और बाद में भारत के सेनाध्यक्ष बने जनरल वीएन शर्मा कहते हैं, “जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह बहुत आला अफ़सर थे. लड़ाई के दौरान एक अफ़सर का डटकर खड़ा होना और अपनी कमांड चलाना जैसा वो चाहे, बड़ी ख़ूबी की बात होती है. उनका मानना था कि अगर आप दूसरे देश में लड़ रहे हैं तो ज़रूरत पड़ने पर आप अपने सैनिकों को पीछे ले जा सकते हैं.”

“लेकिन अगर आप अपने ही देश में लड़ रहे हैं तो पीछे जाने का विकल्प आपके पास है ही नहीं, क्योंकि वो हमारी ज़मीन है, हमारा घर है. हम अपने लोगों को दुश्मन के हवाले कैसे कर सकते हैं. उनके इस रवैये ने देश के नेतृत्व को काफ़ी आत्मविश्वास दिया.”

खाना बरबाद करना पसंद नहीं

हरमाला गुप्ता कहती हैं कि उनका पहला परिवार भारतीय सेना थी. हम दूसरे नंबर पर आते थे. उनको संगीत का काफ़ी शौक था.

पुराने गाने उन्हें बहुत पसंद थे. कभी-कभी वो ख़ुद भी गाने की कोशिश करते थे.

उन्हें ‘चौदवीं का चाँद’ और ‘प्यासा’ के गाने बहुत पसंद थे और वो अक्सर ‘प्यार मांगा लेकिन काँटों का हार मिला’ गाना गुनगुनाया करते थे.

वो अक्सर अपनी गाड़ी ख़ुद ड्राइव करते थे और बहुत रैश ड्राइवर थे. उस ज़माने में उनके साथ पायलट जीप चला करती थी और वो अक्सर अपनी पायलट जीप से आगे निकल जाते थे.

हरमाला कहती हैं, “अनुशासन का उनके जीवन में बहुत महत्व था. हमें नाश्ते और दिन के खाने के बीच कुछ भी खाने की मनाही थी.”

वो बताती हैं, “कोका कोला भी हमारे लिए मना था. वो जापान में युद्धबंदी भी रह चुके थे, इसलिए उन्हें खाने की अहमियत मालूम थी.”

“उनको दो साल तक खाना नहीं मिला, इसलिए वो हमेशा ज़ोर देते थे कि खाना बरबाद नहीं होना चाहिए. जब हम ये कहते थे कि हमें ये नहीं खाना तो उनको ये बात बहुत नागवार गुज़रती थी.”

हर पाकिस्तानी सैनिकों का सम्मान

हरमाला बताती हैं, “उन्होंने पाकिस्तान में युद्ध मे जीती गई हर मस्जिद की मरम्मत करवाकर उसे वापस किया. इसके अलावा उन्हें जिस भी पाकिस्तानी सैनिक का शव मिला, उसे उन्होंने पूरे सैनिक सम्मान के साथ दफ़नवाया.”

“मैं ये भी बताना चाहूँगी कि पाकिस्तानी की तरफ़ से उनके काउंटरपार्ट जनरल बख़्तियार राना उनके दोस्त और बैचमेट थे. वो लाहौर गवर्नमेंट कॉलेज में साथ-साथ पढ़े थे. मुझे याद है कि जब युद्ध विराम के बाद भारत और पाकिस्तान में बातचीत हो रही थी तो संयुक्त राष्ट्र से भेजे गए चिली के जनरल मरंबियो ने पाकिस्तान का टेंट एक तरफ़ रखा और भारत का दूसरी तरफ़.”

“जब मेरे पिता वहाँ पहुंचे तो उन्होंने कहा, कहाँ हैं जनरल राना मैं उनसे मिलना चाहता हूँ. कितने साल हो गए हैं उनसे मिले हुए. उन्होंने जैसे ही जनरल राना को देखा अपनी बाँहों में भर लिया. आश्चर्यचकित जनरल मरंबियों ने कहा कि मुझे तो समझ में ही नहीं आ रहा कि तुम लोग लड़ क्यों रहे हो आपस में. लड़ाई किस बात पर है?”

शास्त्री ने तलवार भेंट की

1965 के युद्ध के बाद दिल्ली के सिख समुदाय ने बंगला साहिब गुरुद्वारे में प्रधानमंत्री लाल बहादुर शास्त्री और जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह को सरोपा देकर सम्मानित किया.

उन्होंने लाल बहादुर शास्त्री को एक तलवार भेंट की जिसका क़द उनसे भी बड़ा था. शास्त्री ने अपने बगल में बैठे जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह को हाथ पकड़ उठाया और वो तलवार उन्हें भेंट कर दी.

शास्त्री बोले, “मैं तो धोती प्रसाद हूँ, पर मेरे जनरल धोती प्रसाद नहीं हैं.” वो तलवार आज भी जनरल हरबख़्श सिंह के परिवार के पास है

-BBC

In what can be considered as mission impossible, 3 Sikhs along with the Lubana Vanjara Sikh traders in Delhi devised a master plan to rescue the body and head of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib Ji after martyrdom.

Sikh Lobanas played many important role during the times of the Sikh Gurus (in Gurukaal). Lobanas (or Labana) are a tribe who live all over India. Labanas have their own language called “Lubanki” which is a dialect. However, this language is only spoken by Labanas outside the Punjab, state of India. The Labanas of Punjab and Haryana are mostly Sikhs and speak mainly Punjabi or Hindi. The term Lobana appears to have been derived from Salt Trading, LUN (“salt”) and the BANA (“trade”) & Iron Dress up, Loh (Iron) and Bana (Dress), which relates them with trading and warriors too.

The following is an excerpt from Bhai Vir Singh’s Kalghidhar Chamatkar and narrates a conversation between Sahib Chan and Hardita. After, Guru Sahih was martyred Bhai Uday, Bhai Jaita, and Bhai Lakhi Shah Vanjara came up with a genius plan to rescue the head and body. There was a dust storm while the rescue of the head and body was occurring due to a nearby fire caused by Lubana Sikhs. The fire was set on purpose to create smoke like conditions so that when Bhai Lakhi and Bhai Jaita rescue the body no one would be able to see as the dust would have dispersed the crowd and took Mughal eyes off of the Sikhs.

“Sahib Chand: Guru Tegh Bahadur’s head, one devotee brought to
Anandpur. But the story of the body is wondrous.

Hardita: It is said that when the executioner Syed Adam beheaded Guru
Tegh Bahadur With his sword, the head that separated from the body did not
fall en the ground. At that time, in the crowd that had thronged to see what
would happened, two of Guru devotees, Jaita and Uday had reached there in
Muslim dress with intention to carry the head away in as best a way as possible.

Sahib Chand: Yes, they were those whom the Guru had blessed the
Lord’s name and made them Lord’s beloveds when the country-men considered
them of low caste.

Hardita: I so happened that at the time of execution, a dust storm blew
hard that there was so black smoke seemed as if it was night, like an earthquake came and the entire town .
was in awe and fear. In that commotion, Bhai Jaita put the sacred head in a
sheet and like a bundle carried it on his head and left Delhi. The executioners
and the public were all In awe and fear. This happened at the Police Station at
Chandni Chewk. Bhai Uda dressed in Muslim robes remained near in the
hope that Lord shall make some say that he may carry the body also.
Mere sometime when the storm subsided it was announced that if any devotee of
the Guru wishes to take the body, he may do so. Actually it was a trick that if
somebody comes, then we will arrest him and find out who was that who
carried the head away despite the police standing there. But none of the
Hindus or even the devotees of the Guru came forward. In the evening one
devotee Lubana alias Vanjara who had unloaded many cart-loads of lime at
the Red Fort and was returning with his empty carts, then Bhai Uda told him:
This is the time you can do service to the Guru. Do not lose this chance of a
lifetime.

So both decided and proceeded with their line of empty carts towards
Chandni Chowk. The irritating smell from the lime made the sentries put
handkerchiefs on their noses and they moved away from their places. Then
both of them moved the carts near to the place of execution. It is mentioned
that the carts were around one hundred in number. They noticed that
the body was lying un-attended, they carried it, covered it with sheets, and put
it on one of the carts. They reached their village that was about three kilometres
from Chandni Chowk. Hurriedly they collected some wood, put the body on
it, said a prayer and lit a fire. The fire engulfed the entire village.
It became a mystery how the Guru’s body had vanished.

In the pell-mell, wherever the Policemen doubted ,they started searches
in the houses of Guru-disciples. One whimsical Police man rode a horse and
went after Lakhi. What he saw there was that they had 1 not even parked their
carts but the entire village was on fire and all the villagers were trying to put
off the fire. Then, the doubt in his mind vanished. But still he inspected the
carts and was satisfied in his mind that they have not carried away the body.
When the police went away, then Lakhi who was on showing off that they
are extinguishing the fire started putting more wood at the place where the
body was burning. In this way, the devotees, the great devotees saved the
sacred body from the hands of the tyrants and cremated the sacred body of
the great Guru who had sacrificed his body for their sake.

Sahib Chand: This is what is called devotion. This is love from the core of
the heart. It is foolish for Aurangzeb to treat the Lord’s loving people with
tyranny. Those who are in forgetfulness of the Lord shall die but those
who are immersed in the love of the Lord, they are fearless and already
detached from the body and the worldly gains. They can win over their
fearlessness? When the love rays from the Lord brings radiance in the mind,
then they become drops of diamond that give eternal radiance. Who can put
off that radiance? To try to kill the Lord’s beloveds is inviting self annihilation.
The kingship creates ego. Who is that who amasse power and keeps the
mind in peace, maybe he is some rare fortunate person. ”

Bhai Lakhi Shah Vanjara was a devout Sikh who lived during the time of the ninth Sikh Guru, Guru Tegh Bahadur. He hailed from the Lobana community of Sikhs, who played an important role during the times of the Sikh Gurus. He was a trader and a contractor and supplier for the Mughal Army and supplied them with saddles, bridles(rakabs) and reins. He also traded in cotton, lime powder(chuna). He lived in Raisina village with his family. He had three sons, Hema, Nagahiya and Harhi and a daughter named Seeto bai.

Bhai Lakhi Shah was present in Delhi on 1675 when Guru Tegh Bahadur was executed at the orders of Aurangzeb. A dust storm had hit Delhi at that time and the Mughal soldiers ran for cover. Bhai Ude and Bhai Lakhi Shah had devised a plan to recover Guru Ji’s body and he planned to bring several bullock carts loaded with cotton through Chandni Chowk at that time. The carts travelling at considerable speed blew more dust into the air, which added to the dust from the storm, adding to the chaos and further reducing visibility. At the risk of his own life, under the cover of darkness and in the dust storm, Bhai Lakhi Shah was able to remove the headless body of the fallen Martyr, with the help of his son Nagahiya, in a cart which was loaded with cotton, and carry it to his humble home. As it was too dangerous to openly cremate the body (the Mughals had planned to desecrate the Guru’s remains and put them on public display) he did so by setting fire to his home, concealing the cremation of the Guru’s body. At the same time, Bhai Jaita was on his to Anandpur Sahib with Guru Tegh Bahadur Sahib’s head.

Afterwards Lakhi Shah, accompanied by his companions, traveled to Anandpur to pay homage to Guru Gobind Singh and let him know that his father’s body had been given the final rights.

Several key incidents in time of the ninth and tenth Gurus are attributed to the Lobana Sikh community. Baba Makhan Shah was a devout Sikh who was responsible for finding the ninth Sikh Guru, (Guru Tegh Bahadur). The Lobanas fought in many battles with Guru Gobind Singh and Baba Banda Singh Bahadur.

Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi marks the site where once stood the house of this dedicated Sikh.

On a back wall in Gurbir Grewal’s office, three portraits of Japanese-Americans detained at the Manzanar internment camp in California hang above his desk, a reminder for Mr. Grewal of when the power of domestic law went horribly awry.

Though the portraits are from decades ago, Mr. Grewal sees alarming parallels to the current political environment, where patriotism is sometimes measured by race, faith or political affiliation. The notion to combat this type of injustice has helped inspire Mr. Grewal, a Sikh, throughout his career, an arc that has seen him rise through the ranks of the federal justice system and now has him poised to become New Jersey’s top law enforcement official.

If, as expected, the Democratic-controlled State Legislature approves his appointment by the governor-elect, Philip D. Murphy, Mr. Grewal, 44, would become the first Sikh in the United States to hold the position of statewide attorney general.

“It’s important for someone like me to do this job that’s front-line law enforcement, to show people that you don’t have to look a particular way to love this country,” he said in an interview.

But in today’s political climate, attorneys general in Democratic states are increasingly being viewed as checks on Trump administration policies.

Just across the Hudson River, Eric T. Schneiderman, the attorney general of New York, has been an aggressive challenger to many of the policies coming out of Washington. Mr. Grewal said that he received a congratulatory call from Mr. Schneiderman this month, and that he looked forward to a “collaborative relationship,” though he refrained from saying whether he would join in any pending cases, only allowing that he would make such decisions when he takes office.

While Mr. Murphy promised to not pressure or interfere with Mr. Grewal, partisan entrenchments have largely transformed the position of statewide attorney general, ostensibly an apolitical position, into an inherently political one.

Mr. Grewal, the current Bergen County prosecutor, said he wasn’t concerned about politics.

“Yeah, I mean, but so what?” Mr. Grewal said when asked about whether taking action contrary to Washington could be construed as political. “Because you’re seeing people today, it’s just unconscionable, that their loyalty and their patriotism is being questioned because of what they look like, where they come from, what they believe. And, you know, that’s the same thing we did in 1942. That’s why I have those pictures on the wall.”

For Mr. Grewal, the appointment, which would place him in charge of the state police force and the state’s prosecutors, also fulfills a local-boy-makes-good tale: He is a New Jersey native, born and raised in Essex County.

He understands the state’s problems, aside from the policies coming out of Washington; Mr. Grewal has laid out key areas that he wants to focus the might of New Jersey’s authority on: addiction, violent crime, police-community relations and social justice issues.

He plans to put in place methods he honed in Bergen County, such as partnering with high schools to address hate crimes and addiction. Concerned about a surge in bias and hate crimes among teenagers, especially racist bullying on social media apps like Snapchat, his office has tried to work with children and teenagers.

He noted that the training and partnering with schools and programs for youth was a bit unconventional for a prosecutor’s office, but he pointed to its preventive intention.

“We’ve gone outside of our lane as a law enforcement agency to address that because we know where that leads,” he said of hate and bias. “We don’t want that to lead to some sort of criminal conduct, as we’ve seen that in this county — we’ve seen attacks on synagogues, arsons and things of that nature and so we’re trying to get in there early.”

Mr. Grewal was hired by Paul J. Fishman, then the United States attorney in New Jersey, as an assistant United States attorney in 2010. He had previously spent about four years in a similar position in Brooklyn. While he began in New Jersey in the smaller general crimes unit, he quickly progressed to take on some high-profile cases.

He prosecuted a first-of-its-kind case against Aleksandr Milrud, who was accused of manipulating stocks through high-speed trading, and he helped secure the conviction of Eliyahu Weinstein, who led a $200 million real estate fraud.

In 2016, Mr. Grewal, a Democrat, was appointed by Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, to officially take over the prosecutor’s office in Bergen County, the most populous in New Jersey.

His rise to the state attorney general’s office also reflects the growing Asian Indian population in New Jersey. The state has the highest percentage of people with Asian Indian backgrounds in the country, according to the Census Bureau’s 2015 American Community Survey.

In 2017, Hoboken elected Ravi Bhalla as the first Sikh mayor of a major city in New Jersey, and Vin Gopal became the first Indian-American to be elected to the State Senate.

Nonetheless, despite the expanding population, national Sikh groups were surprised by the sudden representation in public offices in New Jersey.

“There hasn’t been that many Sikhs in politics, particularly ones with turbans and beard,” said Gurwin Singh Ahuja, executive director of the National Sikh Campaign, but he added that this was beginning to change. “New Jersey is certainly leading the pack, but there have been Sikhs being elected across the country,” such as a city councilwoman in Kent, Wash., where in March a turbaned Sikh man was wounded by a masked gunman.

Mr. Grewal said he had also been on the receiving end of prejudice and injustice. “Growing up, I was called so many variations of the N-word that it just confused me,” he said.

His ethnicity does not define him, he said, but he is acutely aware that his presence in the courtroom — suit and tie, turban and beard — is freighted with meaning in a world where emerging acceptance still vies with underlying racism.

It was just after the Sept. 11 attacks when Mr. Grewal, then a lawyer in private practice, was constantly harassed by a man who would wait outside the office to shout, “I’ve found him, I’ve found bin Laden!”

Enraged but also embarrassed, he said he began to develop creative ways to leave the office, slinking out back doors and leaving at odd hours. But this eventually grew both tiresome and unacceptable. He decided it was time to do something.

“As a lawyer, you know, the options in front of me at that point were to become a prosecutor,” he said. “So I made it my sort of goal to get into U.S. attorney’s office just so I can get up in front of a jury looking the way I do and say, ‘I represent the United States.’”

Source- www.nytimes.com

People from all walks of life bid a tearful adieu to #Braveheart Lance Naik Kuldeep Singh, who was killed in a ceasefire violation along the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir, in Talwandi Sabo.

He was martyred when Pakistani troops opened fire on an Indian Army patrol in Keri sector of Rajouri district.

His last rites were held with full military honours and his body wrapped in the Tricolour, was brought in a bedecked Army vehicle as a large number of people gathered to pay their last respects to him.

As a tribute to the fallen heroes of our country, The Kalgidhar Trust has decided to sponsor the education of his two kids till university level.

When a soldier sacrifices his life to protect the nation, their families are often left with little means of financial support.

There is no better way to uplift and empower his children than EDUCATION!

They guard our borders while we sleep peacefully!