Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw will be immortalised on the silver screen with Meghna Gulzar's Sam Bahadur starring Vicky Kaushal in the titular role hitting the theatres on Friday
The crash in Poonch wiped out an entire chain of command, from the Army Commander down to the Brigade Commander along with the senior most IAF officer in the theatre of operations in a single day.
Visitors can still see a plaque at the bottom of the flagstaff at the check post which bears the words: “Foundation stone of this flag staff was laid by Brig Mohinder Singh Chopra on 11th Oct 1947”.
Like thousands of other people in East Bengal, he had made the mistake, the fatal mistake of running within sight of a Pakistani army patrol. He was 24 years old, a slight man surrounded by soldiers. He was trembling, because he was about to be shot.