Even into seven decades of political independence the lndian nation strives to achieve social freedom for its masses. Among the various kinds of social malaise the most debilitating is the occurrence of periodic communal violence. In the lndian context the fault lines straddle religious, caste, ethnic, linguistic or economic class contours. This book is a testimony to the depravity of 1984 in the country extending to many years thereafter, following army action at the Golden Temple complex. The author strives to present a balanced and objective narrative of events at the national level interspersed with his own experiences. He is convinced that apportioning total blame on a community, group or party for the ignominious events will be as subversion of truth. It is often the insidious few who act with diabolical intent in shedding blood. He exhorts the majority not to remain silent when faced with a crisis beyond their boundaries. The book is a testament of faith that the nation one day will emerge as a place where peace, justice and harmony prevail.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR P. George Eapen
Born in Trivandrum, Plavelil George Eapen did his schooling in Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Poona and New Delhi. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA), Pune, he was commissioned into the Army in 1965 from the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun. The poem ‘If-’ by Rudyard Kipling hung at the cadet’s study table in the NDA has been a lifelong inspiration to him. He reported for duty to 5 Maratha Light Infantry located near Gadra City, a mud-walled dusty village in Sindh, Pakistan, during the Indo-Pak war. His first brush with adventure was while mine-lifting in the sand dunes in the war zone. In 1969, he along with his Intelligence Patrol got trapped in a Pak Indus Rangers ambush on the Cease-Fire-Line in Jammu & Kashmir making him realize the quickness and composure of mind needed to salvage a situation, not to forget the role of providence.
As a member of the Services Selection Board, which selects candidates for being commissioned officers in the Indian Army, he developed insight into human nature. A touching send-off by villagers to his Rifle Company at Kangpat in East Manipur during Counter-Insurgency Operations proved testimony that the Army can truly win the hearts and minds of the people. Hard trained to ‘shoot-to-kill’ in the Army, his transformation into a crusader for humanity calling for an end to violence in society is a revolution by itself. Born into an orthodox Christian family, the author is proud that the Army has enabled him to develop a national secular outlook and advocate the intrinsic oneness of all religions. This book, in essence, is an appeal to the silent majority for sensitiveness to social violence in our midst.
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