captain saurabh kalia

Captain Saurabh Kalia who was brutally tortured and murdered following his capture by Pakistani Army in Kargil War in May 1999,Capt. Saurabh Kalia laid down his life in Kargil war at the prime age of 22; serving for a very short period of less than 5 months. His title to eternal fame and glory lies in the fact that he was the first officer to detect and inform about Pakistani intrusion in Kargil area while doing his patrols in the first fortnight of May, 99.

Pakistani army captured Capt Saurabh Kalia and his patrol alive on 15th May, 99 from the Indian side of Line Of Control (LOC) perhaps after an encounter. They were in Pakistani custody and captivity for about 3 weeks and subjected to unprecedented brutal torture as evident from the condition of their bodies when they were handed over by the Pakistan Army on 9 June, 1999.

The Preliminary Death Certificate shown below and issued on 9th June 1999 is self-explanatory. The Pakistani Army Officers and Soldiers, with their Islamic commitment to compassionate Islam (which seems to have caused no loss of sleep to our ever vigilant Prime Minister!), indulged in the most dastardly acts of burning his body with cigarettes, removing his eyes before puncturing them, breaking most of the bones of his battered body and teeth.

Capt. Kalia along with Sq Ldr Ahuja and four others fought the real battle of Kargil unarmed for 22 days undergoing the worst kind of physical torture known in post-war Indian Military History. In a savage and cowardly manner, the Pakistan Army shot them dead ultimately. These irrefutable facts were brought to light following a detailed post-mortem conducted later at New Delhi. Thus, Pakistan army dared to flout all international cannons of War Law and Justice incorporated in the Geneva Convention to which both India and Pakistan are signatories.

I have seen the detailed autopsy report and am convinced that Capt. Kalia Sq Ldr Ahuja and their men were subjected to the most heinous form of brutal torture by the Pakistani Army before they were shot dead.

Pakistan Government denied and dismissed these allegations arguing that it was the handiwork of Mujaheedins and Pakistan army or Government had nothing to do with this incident. The Skardu Radio in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir broke the news of their capture but the Director General Military Operations of Pakistan Army denied when repeatedly contacted by the Indian counterpart.

Interestingly, Pakistan showed scant concern for their own men and even refused to take back the bodies of their own soldiers numbering in hundreds and Indian army had to bury them with due honours during Kargil war. One wonders what prompted the Pakistan army to risk their men to pull back the bodies of ONLY THESE SIX INDIAN SOLDIERS from gorges several hundred feet deep? The autopsy reports of these soldiers confirmed that the injuries were inflicted ante-mortem as published in the entire Indian press.

Having lost badly in the military sphere, Pakistan outsmarted India in the diplomatic sphere by releasing the captured Flt Lt Nachiketa before the world media even while India, in a shamelessly routine manner, took over from Pakistan army the immensely tortured bodies of Sq Ldr Ahuja, Capt Kalia and other soldiers quietly without a fuss. When Capt Kalia’s body was flown from Kargil to New Delhi for detailed autopsy to determine the extent of torture and mutilation, Government could not garner the support of any foreign media or international human rights organizations during the examination.

Referring to the irresponsible and indifferent attitude of mass media, Dr. N K Kalia told me:“A few high profile editors from Indian press tried to disparage this incident. When a rejoinder was sent by me, only Shri Vinod Mehta (The Outlook) kindly replied that the PakistanForeign Minister had mentioned about the extreme torture not mutilation of the body and Mr. Praful Bidwai (The Mid-day) published my letter while some others did not have the courtesy to acknowledge my letter; leave alone replying or publishing mine rejoinder

Perhaps those who were present while the autopsy was conducted in Delhi, found only torturing and wrote to denigrate the Indian Government. and as if torturing of Prisoners Of War (POWs) was sanctified in their opinion. Sadly, army’s spokesperson did not send any rejoinder National Human Rights Commission remarked that it cannot handle this case on account of some technicalities.

Most of the Indian Human Rights organizations did not raise this issue on any platform. We are, however, overwhelmed by the unprecedented public support. The love, respect, honour and a deep sense of belonging showered on us by innumerable persons during the last over seven years through their deeply felt sentiments have been extraordinary. Over 1.25 lac e-mails and over 40,000 written letters apart from several persons visiting or calling from India or abroad vouch for that. .

Destiny played a cruel joke on Capt. Sarabh Kalia — great believer in LORD BAJRANG BALI (HANUMAN JI) — and incidentally he got captured at the BAJRANG POST and laid down his life in the "OPERATION VIJAY’, the name of his mother being, Mrs Vijay Kalia. Last words of this valiant soldier to his mother before going to Kargil were "MAA, TUM DEKHNA EK DIN AISA KAAM KARUNGA KI SAARI DUNIA MEIN MERA NAAM HOGA’ (Mother, you will see one day I will do such a deed that the whole world will acknowledge that).

The whole nation offered its salutation to this heroic and selfless son of Bharat Matha.

The Himachal Pradesh Government, as a mark of respect, has raised "SAURABH VAN VIHAR’ in a sprawling area of 35 acres in Palampur Town, in addition to renaming the road to Dr. Kalia’s house as CAPT SAURABH KALIA MARG and the area, SAURABH NAGAR (earlier known as Sugghar). Besides, a Nursing College in the proposed Vivekanand Hospital, Palampur is being raised, at the cost of 80 crores in Capt Saurabh Kalia’s fond memory.