Darth Vader
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Jun 19, 2011
- Messages
- 4,446
- Reaction score
- 3
- Country
- Location
Jayanta Gupta | TNN
KOLKATA: This retired Indian Army officer may not have received the recognition he deserved in India but the Bangladeshi government has now decided to honour him for saving the lives of the family members of Bangabandhu Sk Mujibur Rahman, including Sk Hasina, Sk Rehana and their mother from the hands of Pakistani troops. Few people in the country know that as a young unarmed Major, Col (retd) Ashok Kumar Tara confronted nearly 10 armed Pakistani soldiers who had orders to wipe out Mujib's family and convinced them to surrender to him.
Col Tara received a Vir Chakra after the 1971 Indo-Pak War but this was not for his efforts at Mujib's house in Dhaka's Dhanmandi. It was for the hand to hand battle that he and his men fought during the battle in Gangasagar where Param Vir Chakra recipient L/Nk Albert Ekka attained martyrdom.
"We had captured Dhaka airport a few days before December 17, 1971 and I was in charge of security as there was a lot of VIP movement. Around 9 am on that day, a Mukti Bahini leader rushed to us and said that Mujibur's family was being held captive at Dhanmandi and the Pakistani soldiers guarding them had orders to kill them. My officers ordered me to move to Dhanmandi with three men to review the situation. About 100 yards from the house, I came across a large crowd of people. They warned me against proceeding to the house, pointing to a bullet-ridden body in a car. The Mukti Bahini members said that the dead man had tried to drive towards the house and had been shot," the retired colonel from the 14 Guards recounted.
Tara decided that it would be foolhardy to try and attack the house. The lives of the civilians inside were of importance. He asked his men to wait with the mob and handed over his sten gun to them, ordering them not to proceed unless called for. The brave young man then proceeded towards the house.
"When I was near the car with the body, I called out to the people in the house. My shout of Koi Haireceived no response. I moved closer and when I was about 10 yards away from the main gate, I called out once again. This is when a soldier on the roof of the house showed himself and ordered me to stop. He told me that I would be shot if I proceeded. I told him that I was an unarmed Indian Army officer. I also reminded him that the Pakistan Army had already surrendered and there was nobody to save him or his colleagues from the Mukti Bahini. I could see armed soldiers behind three bunkers. I pointed to the IAF helicopters flying overhead and resumed my dialogue. I insisted that everything was in control of the Indian armed forces and they would never be able to return to Pakistan or see their families or friends unless they surrendered," Tara said.
After some time, the gates opened and nearly 10 Pakistani soldiers laid down their arms and moved forward. Tara ordered his men to escort them back to base and entered the house. There he found Sk Hasina, her sister, mother and other members of the family. They were in panic as they had overheard the Pakistanis talking of their plans to assassinate them before leaving the house.
"The family had not had proper food for about two days and had survived on biscuits. We arranged for supplies for them and I was put in charge of security. Finally, it was time for my unit to leave for India but the family would not allow me to go. They had received information that Mujib had been released in Pakistan and was on his way to Bangladesh and wanted me to stay and meet him. When Bangabandhu was told about me by his family members, he hugged me and treated me like his own child. After spending some more time with the family, I returned to India," the colonel said.
SK Rehana, during her last visit to India had wanted to meet Tara but he was not available. He has now received information from the Bangladesh Embassy that their government is planning to honour him for his courage and saving the family. desh/map_of_bangladesh.jpg[/IMG]
