The World Wars produced a number of charismatic generals, born leaders who led their men to victories. Alas, there was neither any Indian general in those wars nor were they our battles. In post Indepenelenee India, however, we have produced a few fine generals, who have become a part of contemporary lore by the way they have conducted operations in the four wars we have fought since Independence, and the innumerable border skirmishes and internal security duties that the army has been involved in.
No general in the past fifly years has built the kind of reputation that Gen. K. Sundarji acquired in his lifetime. His charisma, personality and leadership qualities made him stand out even among the best. He was regarded with respeet by the enemy, and as a source of strength and comfart by his countrymen. Armymen cannot forget the inspiring letter he had written to all ranks on taking over as Chief of Army Staff.
Gen. Sundarji served in the army through the formative years of free India and saw all the wars that the nation fought after 1947. Hence, his reminiscences is a major publishing event, a log of contemporary history seen though the eyes of a serving officer. Sadly, the general could complete only 35 of the 105 pieces he had planned to write
before an untimely illness took him away from us. The 33 articles in this book, therefore, only cover the period from 1945 when the Second Mahars, Sundarji's battalion, moved to Ranchi to 1963 when he was completing a successful stint in the Congo.
What distinguishes this collection of "episodes" is its authenticity and true flavour of a life in uniform. Arranged chronologically; each piece is a window to an aspect of life in the army At the same time, the articles open up pages of the history of post-tndependence lndia, in eluding the trauma of partition.
Alternatively funny, poignant and serious, the stories thrall the reader. Columns of Agony is a heart touching account of the time when the Second Mahars escorted a massive column of refugees during partition. The Train to India is about the horrors of train journeys from the new state of Pakistan to India and vice versa when the coaches would bring back scores of bodies of passengers killed by marauding mobs on the way. To balance, he relates the delightful story of Bandiya the ram, the battalion's mascot, who butted the brigadier and the irrepressible Lt Adi Irani who thought nothing of pulling a fast one on his seniors.
End of an Era is a first hand account of the aftermath of Gandhiji's assassination. It gives a revealing, glimpse of the power of Pandit Nehru over ordinary people when the first Prime Minister of India faced an agitated crowd, brushed aside security, and pacified them. Commanding a 100-strong "internal security" group, Sundarji and his men were on their feet for 30 hours contnuously to control the crowds in Birla House where
Gandhiji's body lay and provide security to VIPs.
The articles on the Kashmir war of 1947 and its aftermath are avealing. IT gives a glimpse of an era when the Indian Army was welcomed as saviours by the people of Kashmir and enjoyed a level of popularity which may appear unreal in today's context. How the goodwill was lost is to be pondered, Peace in the Valley is now a distant dream.
Sundarji's widest coverage is of his period with the contingent of the Indian Army in the Congo (11 articles). Here, he is his best as a raconteur and stroy-teller. One is transported to the unfamiliar terains of Africa, and to the wars that were fought there, and the politics which spawned them. The Congo pieces, by themselves, could have been a highly readable collection.
A touching tribute by his wife Vani sets the tone for this wonderful bouquet of reminiscences. Though Sundarji set out to write about others the book is about him because of the qualities of the man it reveals. Charming, sincere, clever, honest, brave, diplomatic and a leader of men, Sundarji did his country proud.
