No intelligence. No acclimatisation. No high-altitude clothing. Negligible artillery support. Treacherous terrain.
These were the harsh and daunting circumstances under which Major Rajesh Adhikari, a 28-year-old officer, was tasked with capturing the pivotal Tololing peak during the 1999 Kargil War.
“He didn’t blink an eye,” recalls Brigadier Khushal Thakur (Retd.), his Commanding Officer during the war.
“The irony is that he was only on attachment with us—18 Grenadiers—for a year, which was to end in June. He was looking forward to going back and celebrating his first wedding anniversary on June 9.”
However, just 10 days before, Major Adhikari was killed in action on May 30.
“You must understand the circumstances under which Adhikari was launched (in battle). We were told there were just 5 or 6 mujahideen. It was only later that we got to know it was an entire company of regulars (Pakistani army),” he says.
{{/usCountry}}“You must understand the circumstances under which Adhikari was launched (in battle). We were told there were just 5 or 6 mujahideen. It was only later that we got to know it was an entire company of regulars (Pakistani army),” he says.
{{/usCountry}}Major Adhikari led his team in an assault on a well-fortified enemy position at an altitude of 15,000 feet. The Battle of Tololing would go on to become a turning point in the war.
On the night of the assault, Maj Adhikari and Brig Thakur were in touch over radio.
“Around 11 PM, he told me that the fight was on, one bunker had been captured, and he was moving to the next. He said all was well,” Brig Thakur recalls.
“At around 1 or 2 AM, I called again. The radio operator, Lance Naik Rajendra Yadav told me that fighting was on and he was sitting behind a boulder few feet away. He told me Adhikari was engaged in hand-to-hand combat. I asked to speak to him, but he said, ‘Baat nahi ho sakti, all weapons have been opened up.’ Then he said Adhikari seemed injured. While still on the line with me, he said, ‘Oh ma,’ and I knew… he was gone.”
Even after being grievously injured Major Adhikari refused evacuation and continued to engage the enemy soldiers.
“His men were pleading, ‘Peeche hato, peeche hato,’ but despite being under heavy fire himself, he insisted, ‘Mujhe koi chot nahi lagi hai.’ He continued to advance, inflicting heavy casualties —but at the cost of his life.”
Major Adhikari was posthumously awarded the Maha Vir Chakra for his extraordinary valour.
“That same day, he had received a letter from his wife, which he planned to read in peace after the operation. The letter went back unopened, with his mortal remains,” Brig Thakur adds.
The night before the assault, Major Adhikari and his senior, Lt Col Vishwanathan (also killed in action later), had asked their men to speak to their families via satellite phone. But when their own turn came, the battery was drained.
“I had nothing. No resources. And yet, these men fought against all odds. They didn’t blink an eye. Never said, ‘This can’t be done.’ They went ahead and accomplished whatever was asked of them. That’s why we celebrate Vijay Diwas today,” says Brigadier Thakur.
Off the battlefield, the Nainital boy was known among the soldiers for his musical talent. His renditions of Purani Jeans was a favorite among them. “He always had his guitar with him—even at his posts. He’d strum whenever he could. The men loved his music, and they loved him. He was simple, sincere, lovable,” concludes Brig Thakur.