Brave Hearts

Author(s): Kumarpal Desai
Publisher: Eye Care Foundation

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The Fighter Par Excellence
It was in 1965 that India was fighting a war imposed on her by an aggressive neighbour, namely Pakistan. The war had entered a crucial phase and both sides were using all their might to defeat the other. The casualties were mounting on both sides. The Indian army contingents had encircled Lahore, an important city in Pakistan and were keeping a watch on yet another town of theirs, namely, Sialkot. The battle of Lahore was going to be decisive. The brave Indian soldiers were trying their best to capture both these strategically important towns. If the fall of Lahore to the Indian army would have meant cutting off the nose of the enemy, the capture of Sialkot by the Indian armed forces would have been tantamount to beheading the enemy.
The Pakistani forces increased their pressure on Sialkot. The Indian forces prepared themselves to give the enemy a fitting retaliation. Both faced each other in a 'do or die' situation. The enemy had deployed large forces on both fronts and their military hardware too was ample. The Patton tanks provided to Pakistan by the Americans were waging a battle against India. The Saber Jets were roaring in the sky. Pakistani forces had also deployed the Napalm bombs.
While the guns were booming, bullets being spread all around, and the planes were hurling bombs from the skies, a brave Indian soldier Murli had taken up a position on the
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