Ninety-six-year-old Air Marshal Arjan Singh was certainly the
show-stopper at the President’s felicitation for 1965 war veterans on
Tuesday. As his name was called and he walked ram-rod straight towards
President Pranab Mukherjee to take a salute, it was a sight in itself.
In
a short but impressive function, the President also feted the three
others who were martyred — Company Quartermaster Havildar Abdul Hamid,
Lieutenant Colonel Ardeshir Tarapore and Chaman Lal, a fireman who
saved a goods train and several lives by detaching burning bogies. Their
relatives received the honour from the President: Rasoonan Bibi, wife
of Havildar Hamid, Zarine Mahir, daughter of late Lt Col Tarapore, and
Asha Rani, wife of Chaman Lal.
An exhibition-cum-fare has come up
on India Gate lawns as part of the golden jubilee of the 1965 war — an
occasion partly been marred by boycott calls from another set of
veterans, agitating over the One Rank, One Pension demand, many of whom
boycotted the felicitation.
Singh is the only Indian Air Force
officer, who was promoted as Five-Star General. As he walked up to the
President, with a stick in hand, all pride intact, and offered a
salute, the ceremonial hall at Rashtrapati Bhavan broke into loud
applause. As a squadron leader during World War II, Singh was involved
in the Arakan Campaign against the Japanese in 1944 for which he
received the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Vice-President Hamid
Ansari, LS Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, former PM Manmohan Singh, BJP leader
L K Advani, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and three services chiefs
were present.
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