DesiPundit

The presumptive Democrat nominee, Barack Obama offered his condolence to the people of India on the passing of Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, but the political establishment of a grateful nation could not find time to make it to the funeral. Chandra pays tribute to this great soldier.

Imagine when was the last time Bharatiya forces decisively defeated an aggressive foreign force - not a neutral stalemate and surely not a bumbling defeat that was salvaged, partly, only by retreating enemy forces. One has to go a long way. If one thinks about it carefully about the ultimate outcome, may be never. Therein lies the significance of what Sam “Bahadur” Manekshaw did in his brief stint of being in charge of Indian Army. So if the current defense minister and the current chiefs of the three services - who? - did not want to honour
this hero in death, it shows how tiny these men are. But, protocol or not, most people know who the hero, that genuine real life hero, is. The snub does not diminish the Field Marshall who died on June 27, 2008, at a ripe age of 94.