Hero of 1971 Longewala battle against Pakistan Brig Kuldip Singh Chandpuri,dies
KS Diwan/ royalpatiala.in/ Mohali
Indian Army decorated war veteran Brigadier Kuldip Singh Chandpuri Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) died in a private hospital in Mohali. He was 78.
Chandpuri, who was an Army Major during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, had held his post through the night in the famous battle of Longewala, a remote outpost in the deserts of Jaisalmer in Rajasthan, with just 120 men against a full-fledged attack by advancing Pakistani Patton tanks.
He was decorated with the Maha Vir Chakra (MVC), the nation’s second highest gallantry award, for the heroic stand-off against the tanks and forcing the enemy to retreat.
Brigadier Kuldip Singh Chandpuri is survived by his wife and three sons, the war hero would have turned 78 on November 22. His mortal remains will be consigned to the flames with full military honours on Monday after close family members return from abroad.
We were given a choice — To stay put and defend the position or go in for a tactical retreat. We chose to stay put and fight,” Brig Chandpuri, told to media in an interview, when he was alive.
