Jammu, June 13 -- Saluting the Saviour of Kashmir

By Ravi Rohmetra

This is the saga of a man who thwarted Pakistan's plan to annex Jammu and Kashmir in 1947. With a force of just 100 soldiers under his command, he put up a heroic resistance against thousands of invading raiders. That man was Brigadier Rajinder Singh, the first war hero of Independent India.

Brigadier Rajinder Singh was born on June 14, 1899, in the small village of Bagoona (later renamed Rajinderpura in his honour), about 35 kilometres east of Jammu. He belonged to the Dalpatia clan of the Jamwal Rajputs. Bravery and sacrifice ran deep in his family. His illustrious ancestor, General Baj Singh, had sacrificed his life in the defence of Chitral nearly a century earlier....