The Unresolved Tragedy of India's Missing 54 Prisoners of War

Rajesh Kaura believes his brother Captain Ravindra Kaura is alive in Pakistan Source Author

An Appeal for Humanity, Justice and Closure by Col NN Bhatia (Retd) Human Rights and Peace Activist and Advocate for India's Missing Prisoners of War seeking  humanitarian intervention for release of 54 Prisoners of War believed to be held alive in Pakistan

More than 55 years after the 1965 and 1971 India-Pakistan wars, the fate of India's missing defence personnel remains unresolved. For their families, the war never ended.

Parents waited in vain for their sons. Wives spent a lifetime hoping for the return of their husbands. Children grew up without fathers, and today even grandchildren continue to seek answers to questions that have remained unanswered for more than half a century.

This is no longer merely a military, political, or diplomatic issue. It is a humanitarian issue that transcends borders, ideologies, and generations.

Over the years, numerous reports, testimonies, broadcasts, eyewitness accounts, and other sources have suggested that some missing Indian servicemen may have survived the wars and remained in captivity for varying periods. While many such accounts remain disputed or unverified, they are sufficiently significant to merit a sincere, transparent, and humanitarian effort to establish the truth once and for all.

We therefore appeal to the Governments of India and Pakistan, the international community, human-rights organizations, the media, diplomats, military veterans, jurists, academics, and concerned citizens to support all efforts aimed at determining the fate of these missing servicemen.

If any prison records, military archives, burial records, photographs, eyewitness accounts, intelligence reports, or other relevant documents exist, they should be made available for impartial examination. If any of these brave men are still alive, every effort should be made to identify them and facilitate contact with their families. If they are no longer alive, sincere efforts should be undertaken to locate, identify, and repatriate their mortal remains through modern forensic and DNA techniques, enabling their families to perform the last rites with dignity and honour.

The families seek neither revenge nor political advantage. They seek only the truth. They seek closure. They seek peace.

Surjit Singh in 1971 in Pakistan (left), Surjit Singh released by Pakistan in 2012 (right) Source Author

For many years, I have worked quietly and selflessly on this issue, engaging with affected families, journalists, diplomats, government officials, military veterans, lawyers, human-rights activists, and peace advocates in India, Pakistan, and other countries. Throughout this journey, I have witnessed the immense emotional burden borne by families who continue to live with uncertainty and hope.

A nation's duty towards those who served in uniform does not diminish with the passage of time. Nor does the suffering of families who have spent decades awaiting answers.

This long-pending humanitarian issue deserves urgent attention, sincerity, compassion, and courage from all concerned.

Major S P S Waraich

The compiled names of these 54 defence personnel, categorized by branch, are as under-

Indian Army (IA)

·         Major SPS Waraich

·         Major Kanwaljit Singh Sandhu

·         Major Jaskiran Singh Malik

·         Major AK Suri

·         Major AK Ghosh

·         Major SC Guleri

·         Captain Kalyan Singh Rathod

·         Captain Giriraj Singh

·         Captain Om Prakash Dalal

·         Captain Kamal Bakshi

·         Captain Ravindra Kaura

·         Captain DS Jamwal

·         Captain Vashisht Nath

·         2/Lt Sudhir Mohan Sabharwal

·         2/Lt Paras Ram Sharma

·         Subedar Assa Singh

·         Subedar Kali Das

·         L/Hav Krishan Lal Sharma

·         L/Naik Jagdish Raj

·         L/Naik Hazoora Singh

·         L/Naik Balbir Singh

·         Sepoy Jagir Singh

·         Sepoy Madan Mohan

·         Sepoy Pal Singh

·         Sepoy Daler Singh

·         Sepoy Gian Chand

·         Gunner Sujan Singh

·         Gunner Shyam Singh

Flight Lieutenant Vijay Vasant Tambay Source Autho

Indian Air Force (IAF)

·         Wing Commander Horsern Singh Gill

·         Squadron Leader Mohinder Kumar Jain

·         Squadron Leader Devaprashad Chatterjee

·         Squadron Leader Jal Miniksha Mistry

·         Squadron Leader Jatinder Das Kumar

·         Flight Lieutenant Vijay Vasant Tambay

·         Flight Lieutenant Sudhir Kumar Goswami

·         Flight Lieutenant Harvinder Singh

·         Flight Lieutenant Ilyoo Moses Sassoon

·         Flight Lieutenant Ram Metharam Advani

·         Flight Lieutenant Nagaswami Shanker

·         Flight Lieutenant Suresh Chander Sandal

·         Flight Lieutenant Kushalpal Singh Nanda

·         Flight Lieutenant Tanmaya Singh Dandass

·         Flight Lieutenant Ramesh Gulabrao Kadam

·         Flight Lieutenant Babul Guha

·         Flight Lieutenant Gurdev Singh Rai

·         Flight Lieutenant Ashok Balwant Dhawale

·         Flight Lieutenant Shrikant Chandrakant Mahajan

·         Flight Lieutenant Kottiezath Puthiyavettil Murlidharan

·         Flight Lieutenant Manohar Purohit

·         Flying Officer Sudhir Tyagi

·         Flying Officer Krishan Lakima J. Malkani

·         Pilot Officer Tejinder Singh Sethi

Indian Navy (IN)

·         Lt Commander Ashok Roy

Other

·         SBS Chauhan (Unspecified Rank/Branch)

 We further appeal to leading newspapers, television channels, digital media platforms, journalists, editors, documentary filmmakers, commentators, and opinion-makers in India, Pakistan, and across the world to highlight this long-forgotten humanitarian tragedy. Sustained and responsible media coverage can help create wider public awareness, encourage transparency, and generate the international attention necessary to ensure that this issue is not forgotten.

The plight of the missing Indian defence personnel and the anguish of their families deserve to be brought before the conscience of the world. Greater awareness can encourage renewed humanitarian efforts to establish the fate of the missing servicemen, secure the release of any survivors, and provide long-overdue closure to their families.

After more than five decades, silence and indifference can no longer be an option. The world deserves to know their story, and their families deserve answers.

Let the truth be known.

Let the missing be accounted for.

Let the families find closure.

Let this painful and avoidable human tragedy finally come to an honourable and humane end. Though officially NOT known to me, I also appeal the Indian Government that if there was any Pakistani prisoners of war held in India they must be released reciprocally in the spirit of humanity, justice, fair play and reconciliation and similar humanitarian efforts made to secure their release.

No soldier who served his nation should remain forgotten, and no family should be denied the right to know the fate of its loved one. Should any of these missing servicemen no longer be alive, every effort must be made to locate, identify, and repatriate their mortal remains. After proper forensic examination and DNA verification, their remains or ashes should be handed over to their families so that they may bid their loved ones a final dignified and befitting farewell.

History will judge nations not only by how they fought their wars, but also by how they honoured those who never returned home.

Let humanity prevail over hostility, truth over uncertainty, and compassion over indifference.

Col NN Bhatia (Retd)

Human Rights and Peace Activist

Advocate for India's Missing Prisoners of War

Mobile No: +919818044762

Email ID: narindrabhatia@hotmail.com