Devoted to motherland till the end

Varinder Singh

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Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, November 19

Brig Kuldip Singh Chandpuri, the hero of Laungewala battle during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, was so passionate about his motherland that he bowed down and touched the ground in reverence the moment he landed at Delhi’s IGI Airport upon arrival from Canada on November 8.

The Maha Vir Chakra recipient had been residing with his son Amardeep and daughter-in-law Scindia in Brampton since June. Ironically, it was on August 23, his son’s birthday, that the decorated soldier was diagnosed with blood cancer during a routine check-up.

Admitted to a cancer facility in Mississauga, Brig Chandpuri, who would have turned 78 on November 22, insisted he be shifted immediately to India, the country close to his heart and where he had an army of buddies.

Talking to The Tribune, Amardeep said, “The first thing my father would say every morning was “take me to India”. We somehow persuaded him to stay put till Diwali. Till then, he would keep himself busy watching Indian movies or programmes that kept him updated about his homeland. The most touching moment came when we alighted from the aircraft at the IGI and a visibly elated Chandpuri “sahib” bowed down to touch his head to the ground to pay respects to the land he belonged to.”

Even during his last days in Brampton when he was not keeping well, Brig Chandpuri would put up a brave face and encourage others to stay positive. Narrating an incident, Scindia said, “Once an Indian friend came to Toronto for the first time and was feeling quite homesick. She had a chance meeting with my father-in-law who gave her tips on how to fight the enemy of loneliness. Her face was lit up after the brief chat and there were no complaints thereafter.”

As predicted by Brig Chandpuri, the girl settled down well even as fate had something else in store for him, said Scindia, her voice choking with emotion.