scholar warrior An Ode to an Iconic Braveheart: Brigadier Sant Singh, MVC* RAJ MEHTA Brigadier Sant Singh Gill, MVC*, a man who exemplified Naam, Namak, Nishan was recommended four times for the Maha Vir Chakra (MVC). He remains one of only six officers of India’s armed forces twice awarded this second highest battlefield gallantry award in successive wars. Forever a volunteer for hazardous operational responsibilities, he was a tireless man of action, thinking on his feet and taking seemingly snap decisions which turned out to be unerringly prescient. Mentally and physically tough, he set high standards and ensured compliance. A ‘Follow Me’ braveheart who walked his talk in battle and personal life, he cared passionately for soldiers, taking their welfare and societal respect to new levels post retirement. An Overview Brigadier Sant Singh Gill, MVC* was born on July 12, 1921, in a Jat Sikh family of modest means in Panjgrain Kalan village of the erstwhile Faridkot princely State (now Faridkot district). Panjgrain Kalan had only a primary school in 1928. Sant thereafter joined the Government Middle School at Kot Kapura, walking to 106 ä SPRING 2020 ä scholar warrior scholar warrior school 10 km each way despite occasional encounters with wolves, and thereby developed self-confidence and fearlessness. He completed his Matriculation in the Brijendra High School and Intermediate in RSD College, Ferozepur. With no career guidance available, Sant enlisted in July 1941 as a clerk in the Faridkot State Forces Engineer Field Company (later merged into the Bengal Engineer Group) when World War II was in full swing. During the Japanese siege of Imphal in March-June 1944, his Commanding Officer (CO), Lieutenant Colonel BAE Maude, recommended him for an Officers Commission. Called for an interview, after several unsuccessful attempts, he was examined by the SSB Centre, Singapore, in February 1946. Selected for the Short Service Regular Commission and trained at the Officers Training School, Bangalore, he was commissioned on February 16, 1947, in 1/14 Punjab Regiment and then deployed in the Northwest Frontier Province (NWFP), where he gained first-hand guerrilla warfare experience. On partition, with the regiment allotted to Pakistan, Sant reported to 2 SIKH LI at Rajkot, Gujarat in November 1947, in time for the Junagadh state operations. On their completion, he reported to 1 SIKH LI, participating in operations in the Naushehra-Jhanger Sector from January 1948 to April 1953. His bravery resulted in his first recommendation for the award of the MVC even though he ended up with a Mention-in-Dispatches (Gallantry). Granted Permanent Commission on August 15, 1951, Captain Sant, with just six years of service, secured a competitive vacancy for the 7th Defence Services Staff College Course at Wellington in 1953-54. He commanded 5 SIKH Ll from October 1964 to April 1968 in the Naushahra-Jhangar Sector in 120 Infantry Brigade, part of 25 Infantry Division during which he was awarded the MVC for brilliant leadership at Op Hill (details later). Post command, Sant was posted as Instructor Class ‘A’ at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) and later as General Staff Officer Grade 1 (GSO1). Appointed temporary Brigadier before the Bangladesh War in 1971, he commanded the FJ Sector, tasked to enroll, train, equip and arm nearly 1,500 Mukti Bahini guerrillas every month and direct their operational employment. Training the Mukti Bahini One of the architects of the Bangladesh liberation war, despite his relatively junior rank, Brigadier Sant Singh’s yeoman efforts for creating the Mukti Bahini, will be long remembered. Operation Searchlight was a genocide perpetrated by the West Pakistanis/collaborators against their own citizens, ultimately scholar warrior ä SPRING 2020 ä 107 scholar warrior accounting for three million Bangladeshis dead and two lakh women raped, as per a 2019 UN General Assembly statement by the Bangladesh Prime Minister. The carnage reached its climax in mid-May 1971. As Commander FJ Sector, Sant was called to Headquarters (HQ) Eastern Command on May 3, 1971, and briefed about the need to create a cohesive Bangladeshi force to defeat the Pakistan Army in concert with India’s armed forces. He identified area Tura in Meghalaya, setting up training camps alongside the Border Security Force (BSF); thereby forming the nucleus of the “Mukti Bahini” or Liberation Army. He worked out a practical syllabi of four weeks which converted the inexperienced but passionate Bangladeshis into a force the Pakistanis came to dread. They made up equipment deficiencies with their infectious patriotism. Sant divided the Mukti Bahini training into three linked parts: y Small arms, field craft and explosives training. y Civil administration imperatives for liberated zones. y Communication training using combat radio. Pakistan launched Operation Chengiz Khan on December 3, 1971, afternoon, forcing India to declare war later that evening. Mid-November 1971 onwards, the Mukti Bahini guerrillas carried out sabotage activities on Pakistani lines of communication, blasting bridges/culverts, uprooting railway tracks, thereby forcing the Pakistanis to their increasingly cut-off bases, particularly in the Mymensingh area. For the Indian Air Force (IAF), Sant managed detailed intelligence information about Pakistani air bases, formation’s/units/weapon identification, infrastructure, topography and terrain details. The Dacca air bases’ technical information was of great operational use for the HQ Eastern Army and Air Commands. Sant shared the privations of his men in FJ Sector, living and operating from a small tent in Tura. Stunning Success with Minimal Resources When war broke out on December 3, this amazingly gifted officer commanding an ad hoc sector did operational wonders with improvisation and tactical acumen. He had just one regular infantry battalion besides the Mukti Bahini and BSF but crossed three rivers, despite their bridges being blasted, to capture Mymensingh, thus, helping to disintegrate the enemy 93 Infantry Brigade as a fighting entity in concert with 95 Infantry Brigade. Seeing an opportunity, Sant advanced on his own to Madhupur, 50 km south of Mymensingh, sensing that fellow formation, 95 Infantry Brigade Group was held up at Jamalpur. With no transport allotted, Sant 108 ä SPRING 2020 ä scholar warrior scholar warrior improvised with local resources, himself using a bicycle to exercise command. He was awarded a second MVC for the capture of Mymensingh and Madhupur (details later). In 1972, Sant became a substantive Brigadier, commanding 68 Infantry Brigade/15 Corps. Post retirement in 1973, he had several BSF tenures as Deputy Inspector General (DIG). Humanitarian Work After winding up a business venture that he set up in Gwalior in 1984, Sant settled down in Chandigarh. He and likeminded veterans set up an All India Association of gallantry awardees Non-Governmental Organisation called War Decorated of India in which Sant served three tenures as President. He was also President of the Indian Ex-Services League, Chandigarh, from 1987 onward, besides holding eminent civic positions. Serving the ex-service men was his lifelong passion, committing his time, money and life towards promoting their cause and pushing their cases forward above all else. Family Man of Remarkable Compassion and Acuity Sant married Satwant Kaur on November 5, 1944. Their son was lost in a drowning accident in September 1973. Painter daughter Satinder is married to painter/photography hobbyist Brigadier SS Randhawa who commanded 11 MECH and 121 Infantry Brigade. Sant is remembered as an exceptionally loving husband, a father who treated his son and daughter equally. He held that honesty, integrity, loyalty, compassion and trust were non-negotiable values; showing the right way himself. A lifelong teetotaler, he never got visibly angry but ensured his feelings were conveyed without abuse or recrimination. He had a fabulous memory for the faces and incidents he encountered in the wars. A deeply religious man, Deh Shiva Varmohe and Jo Bole So Nihal were his favourite shabads, living his life like the saint-soldier that he was in word and deed. Mendhar Cantt is named after Brigadier Sant Singh, MVC*—a fitting ode to his greatness. scholar warrior ä SPRING 2020 ä 109 scholar warrior Chuh-I-Nar (Op Hill) 1965 Fig 1: Satellite Imagery of OP Hill. Balnoi Base lies due NE Background and Importance Called Chuh-i-Nar by Pakistan and OP Hill by India, the 1524 m hill complex lay southwest of Road Mendhar-Balnoi, dominating it and threatening Mendhar town, besides isolating the Balnoi Battalion. Occupying it in August 1965, Pakistan had converted it into a strong battalion defended area, bringing down accurate fire on the 2 DOGRA Picquet 636 and launching several attacks to capture it even as it improved the OP Hill defences with shell-proof bunkers, wire obstacles, mines and dedicated artillery. An attack by 2 GARH RIF on the night of October 6-7, to capture the feature resulted in failure, with the Garhwalis suffering two officers, one Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO), 18 Other Ranks (ORs) killed, and 75 wounded including four officers and three JCOs. With appeals to the UN Observer Group failing, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 25 Infantry Division decided on October 15, to launch 120 Infantry Brigade to recapture OP Hill in three phases. 2 DOGRA was to capture Twin Pimples and Black Rocks and 5 SIKH LI was to take White Rocks in Phase 1, commencing 2200 h on November 2. In Phase 2, 7 SIKH was to take Jungle and OP Hill by 0500 h D plus 1, and in Phase 3, also capture Twin Trees and Lone Tree by 0600 h D plus 1. 110 ä SPRING 2020 ä scholar warrior scholar warrior Fig 2: Battle of Op Hill The Battle 2 DOGRA crossed the Ceasefire Line at 2200 h on November 2. Charlie Company took Twin Pimples by 2345 h but was reduced to 20 survivors.