A Leader of 6 Dogra
Major Darshan Singh Lalli of 6 Dogra was a seasoned officer who had served in the Indian Army for around 15 years by 1965. Born in Jalandhar on 9 August 1925, he was commissioned into the Dogra Regiment and had risen to the rank of Major by the time of the Indo-Pak War.
In September 1965, 6 Dogra was deployed in Jammu and Kashmir and was tasked with operations in the Hajipir sector. Major Lalli commanded B Company, which was assigned the difficult task of capturing Tree Hill, a feature near Gitian.
The Battle of Gitian
During the night of 20/21 September, Major Lalli led his men towards the objective. When the company was about 200 yards from the position, the enemy opened heavy fire and the troops encountered a minefield. Despite heavy casualties and intense enemy shelling, Major Lalli led the assault and captured the objective.
The enemy launched a major counter-attack with nearly 250 personnel supported by heavy artillery and medium machine guns. Major Lalli reorganised his position and personally moved from bunker to bunker, encouraging his men. With only about 60 personnel, he led the defence and successfully repulsed the counter-attack.
The Vir Chakra
While reorganising his defences after the counter-attack, Major Lalli was struck by a burst of enemy machine-gun fire. He succumbed to his injuries and made the supreme sacrifice on 21 September 1965.
For his exceptional courage, leadership and devotion to duty during the battle, Major Darshan Singh Lalli was awarded the Vir Chakra. His conduct at Gitian remains an example of a commander leading his soldiers from the front under intense enemy fire.
On 21 September, The Honour Post pays tribute to Major Darshan Singh Lalli for his courage, leadership, service and supreme sacrifice in the service of the nation.
