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The missing 54 are 54 soldiers and officers of the Indian Armed Forces who went missing in action during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 and whom the Indian government believes to be secretly held by Pakistan. Pakistan denies the existence of such prisoners of war. [1] [2]
During the war, The fifth battalion of the Assam Regiment was deployed as part of 191 Infantry Brigade on the west of Munnawar Tawi River in the Chambb region. 10 Infantry Division on the Indian side faced 23 Division on the Pakistani side. 5 Sikh were at Chhamb and were in the middle of the brigade group with 5 Assam and 4/1 Gorkha Rifles on either side. On 4 December, Pakistani artillery and PAF were in action in the areas of 5 Sikh and 5 Assam, the Pakistani infantry supported by armour captured Mandiala North after fighting. On 5 December, two tanks of Deccan Horse and a platoon of 5 Sikh recaptured the Mandiala Bridge. These three battalions were subjected to intense shelling and repeated PAF attacks. During this battle, Major Ashok Suri went missing. [3] [4]
The Pakistan government invited family members to Pakistan to identify, if found, its missing defence personnel in November 1982 when India and Pakistan signed a protocol on exchange of prisoners when Zia Ul Haq visited India. On 30 May 1983, Narasimha Rao said that he would take up at the highest level the visit of the parents of missing defence personnel to Pakistan. A delegation of six next-of-kins were allowed to go, it was made very clear that this was a classified visit that the press were not invited to. The families left on 12 September 1983, Monday to visit Lahore. This was the first time the Indians had got consular access after 1971. The families got to know that some officials of the MEA will also be going with them to Multan jail. Indira Gandhi was making aggressive statements in favour of Khan Abdul Gafar Khan and the MQM movement which was irritating Pakistan. On 14 September they flew to Multan, India was supposed to grant Pakistani officials reciprocal access to 25 Pakistani prisoners at Patiala jail which did not happen. The news came in Pakistani papers that "India goes back on its words". On 15 September 1983, the soldiers families visited Multan jail. [5]
On the Eastern front where there were 93,007 POWs (of which 72,795 were soldiers), an agreement was signed by the Foreign Ministers of India, Bangladesh and Pakistan on 30 April 1974 at New Delhi. Thereafter the Pakistani POWs captured on the Eastern front were also repatriated.
The North-West Frontier was a region of the British Indian Empire. It remains the western frontier of present-day Pakistan, extending from the Pamir Knot in the north to the Koh-i-Malik Siah in the west, and separating the modern Pakistani frontier regions of North-West Frontier Province, Federally Administered Tribal Areas and Balochistan from neighbouring Afghanistan in the west. The borderline between is officially known as the Durand Line and divides Pashtun inhabitants of these provinces from Pashtuns in eastern Afghanistan.
The Sikh Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army. Sikh regiment is the highest decorated regiment of the Indian Army and in 1979, the 1st battalion was the Commonwealth's most decorated battalion with 245 pre-independence and 82 post-independence gallantry awards, when it was transformed into the 4th battalion, Mechanised Infantry Regiment. The first battalion of the regiment was officially raised just before the partial annexation of the Sikh Empire on 1 August 1846, by the British East India Company. Currently, the Sikh Regimental Centre is located in Ramgarh Cantonment, Jharkhand. The Centre was earlier located in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.
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The Bihar Regiment is an Indian Army infantry regiment. It traces its origins back to the British Indian Army. The Bihar Regiment was formed in 1941 by regularising the 11th (Territorial) Battalion, the 19th Hyderabad Regiment, and raising new battalions. The Bihar Regimental Centre (BRC) is located at Danapur Cantonment, Patna, the second oldest cantonment of India. INS Vikramaditya, the Indian Navy's largest ship and one of its two aircraft carriers is affiliated to the Bihar Regiment, Indian Army's highly decorated and battle-hardened unit.
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Lieutenant General Harbaksh Singh, VrC was a senior General Officer in the Indian Army. As the Western Army Commander, Singh commanded the Indian Army forces and played a key role during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965. For his role in the war, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 1966.
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The 8th Punjab Regiment was a regiment of the British Indian Army from 1922 to 1947. It was transferred to Pakistan Army on Partition of India in 1947 and merged with the Baluch Regiment in 1956.
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The 66th Punjabis was an infantry regiment of the British Indian Army. It was raised in 1761 as the 7th Battalion of Coast Sepoys. It was designated as the 66th Punjabis in 1903 and became 2nd Battalion 1st Punjab Regiment in 1922. In 1947, it was allocated to the Pakistan Army, where it continues to exist as 2nd Battalion The Punjab Regiment.
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