The Patriarch
(Late) Lt Col Bhagwan Singh — soldier, statesman, and patriarch of the family.
(Late) Lt Col Bhagwan Singh
25 November 1905 — 13 July 2000
A Homage · 120th Birth Anniversary
Paying homage to a legend of Jammu & Kashmir
Paying homage to (Late) Lt Col Bhagwan Singh — a legend from the State of Jammu & Kashmir — on his 120th birth anniversary.
Born on 25 November 1905 in a Dogra Rajput clan of the Jamwals, in the village of Suchani, District Jammu, Lt Col Bhagwan Singh was commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Jammu & Kashmir State Forces at the young age of eighteen.
An outstanding officer and a sportsman from the very day of his commissioning, he was chosen to command the 1st J&K Mountain Battery in the Middle East during the Second World War. At a time when the British reigned supreme in India, he took up the cause of fighting the gross injustice done by British officers to Indian officers — even when the latter were senior. He had the courage to remove two British Special Service officers posted to his unit during the War, despite their overriding powers, and held the rare distinction of commanding his unit through the War independent of British officers.
The 1st J&K Mountain Battery went on to excel in every operation it took part in during the War. Its exploits were highlighted by the Field Marshals and Commanders-in-Chief, Middle East — Lord Auchinleck and Lord Wavell — in their letters of appreciation to the State. On learning of these, HH Maharaja Hari Singh ji flew to Egypt to meet Lt Col Bhagwan Singh, then a Major — as seen in the photograph below.
After the Second World War, on his return from the Middle East, Colonel Bhagwan Singh was tasked with raising and commanding the 1st J&K Rifles (Raghu Pratap). He took premature retirement — hanging up his uniform — after a difference of opinion with the British Chief of Staff of the J&K Forces. He went on to become Private Secretary and close confidant to HH Maharaja Hari Singh ji. He witnessed the political conspiracy surrounding the accession of the State to the Indian Dominion, and was sent several times to Delhi as the Maharaja’s special envoy to negotiate military support for the State with the then Home Minister, Sardar Patel.
Though out of uniform for a couple of years, the Army had not had enough of him yet. In 1947, upon the Partition of India, when Pakistani tribal raiders attacked the State of Jammu & Kashmir, he was recalled to wear the uniform once again — to serve his State and his motherland. He took over command of the Jammu Brigade (now 104 Infantry Brigade), and had the distinction of recapturing Budhal, in Rajouri District, from the raiders — a feat he achieved by leading an infantry company in a frontal attack, as a Brigade Commander.
Lt Col Bhagwan Singh finally hung up his uniform in 1950, and went on to write two books as his memoirs — War on Two Fronts and Political Conspiracies of Kashmir. He led a peaceful life in retirement, and lived to see all three of his sons and two of his grandsons join the Indian Army before he breathed his last on 13 July 2000.
As his grandson, I had the proud privilege of learning immensely — of Character, Leadership, Determination, Valour, Values, and the Courage of Conviction — from this great personality: my grandfather. Jai Hind! 🇮🇳
His Memoirs
Two books, set down in his own hand
After hanging up his uniform in 1950, Lt Col Bhagwan Singh wrote his memoirs — War on Two Fronts and Political Conspiracies of Kashmir. Both are reproduced here in full; turn the pages in the online reader, just as with the other books in this archive.
