Jind’s braveheart who died fighting militants in Kashmir valley

Col Dilbag Singh Dabas (Retd)

Major Viney Chaudhary, although born in a family of teachers, yearned to serve the nation by being part of the defence services right from his childhood.

The only son of Zile Singh, a schoolteacher, Viney was born on January 18, 1968, at Mangal Pur village in Jind district of Haryana. He was good at studies and after performing extremely well in graduation, his father advised him to pursue higher studies and realise his father's dream of becoming a professor in a university at the entry level itself.

Viney was a doting son, but no more a teenager. Without giving a second thought, he decided to don the olive green and one day spoke to his father with utmost confidence: "Papa, aapke school ke main dwar par Lal Bahadur Shastri ka nara likha hai 'Jai Jawan - Jai Kisan'.

Hamare parivar mein dadaji kisan the, aap master ho par ab tak jawan koi nahi, main jawan banna chahta hoon." (Dear father, the entrance to the school where you teach has a slogan by Lal Bahadur Shastri which says 'Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan'. In our family, our grandfather was a farmer, you are a teacher, but there is no soldier. I want to be a soldier.) That was the proudest moment for Master Jile Singh and Santosh Masterni.

After graduation from Government College, Jind, Viney was selected for Short Service Commission, but wanted to be a regular at the entry level itself. In the very next attempt, he was selected for the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, and after two years of military training, was commissioned into the 13th Battalion of the Punjab Infantry Regiment (Jind) on December 15, 1990. Viney, incidentally, was the first commissioned officer from his village.

After he joined the Army, women folk in Mangal Pur often told his mother: "Masterni, tera ek chhora aur vo bhi tannai fauj me bhej diya!" (You just have one son and you've sent him in the Army!) The proud mother replied in a classic and courageous manner: "Bebe, desh pahle ke chhora pahle?" (Is son before the nation?) Some mothers are like that.

By the time the 13th Punjab Battalion was inducted into the Pulwama district of Jammu & Kashmir in 1998 for anti-militancy operations, the entire Kashmir valley was in the firm grip of militancy. Within three months of its induction into the Kashmir valley, the battalion established a good network with locals and also discerned the modus operandi of militants. Pulwama district, east of Pir Panjal in Kashmir valley, despite being nowhere near the Line of Control (LOC), had been engulfed in militancy since the time it raised its ugly head in the Valley in the late'80s. Covert support to militants by misguided youth had steadily made the task of security forces extremely difficult. However, the infantry battalions were successful in eliminating some hard-core militants and containing the spread of militancy by cordon and search operations. In one such operation, Major Viney Chaudhary of 13 Punjab Battalion did the battalion proud by his gallant action against militants and earned for himself the coveted Shaurya Chakra.

Major Viney Chaudhary, SC, is survived by his wife and a son who has just completed his graduation and is gearing up to follow the footsteps of his brave father.

The battle account of his bravery reads…

“On April 29, 1999, Major Viney Chaudhary of the 13th Punjab Battalion, who had developed an intricate intelligence network in and around Pulwama district in Kashmir Valley, received a reliable input from the battalion headquarters about the presence of militants in Takia village. He was also tasked to conduct a cordon and search operation to flush out militants. The officer immediately led his column and established tight cordon around the clusters of houses by 3 pm. By excellent marksmanship, Major Chaudhary shot down the militant who was firing at the cordon. In the ensuing fire fight, Major Chaudhary crawled to a position of advantage under covering fire from his men and shot down the second militant. The officer, while inching forward for the third militant, received gunshot wound in his right thigh. Disregarding his injury, and sensing threat to his comrades, Major Chaudhary charged towards the house and shot the third militant at point blank range. But in the fire fight, he, too, was fatally injured and succumbed to his injuries even before his evacuation to the hospital. During the encounter with the most dreaded militants, for his indomitable courage, dogged determination and inspirational leadership in the line of fire, Major Viney Chaudhary was awarded the Shaurya Chakra, posthumously”

(The writer is a veteran Gunner, 6 Field Regiment)

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