India Won The Bangladesh Battle Even Before A Full-Scale War

Written by Pastiche

The Battle of Dhalai

The Battle of Dhalai was fought between Pakistan and India, a month before the official start of the 1971 India-Pakistan War for the liberation of Bangladesh. Even before a full-scale war started between India and Pakistan on 3 December 1971, India had already won the Bangladesh battle on the operational front with a deft orchestration of multiple tools of statecraft.

By November 1971, almost 10 million refugees from East Pakistan had fled their homes and streamed into India in the wake of mass killings perpetrated on the Bengali population by the Pakistan military under the ‘Butcher of Bangladesh’, Lt. Gen. Tikka Khan. From the turn of events in mid-November 1971, Indira Gandhi gave her generals the go-ahead to exert pressure on East Pakistan’s periphery with a series of probing military actions. Indian military, intelligence agencies and Mukti Bahini commenced widespread military incursions into over 20 salient inside East Pakistan by 20 November to keep Lt. Gen. Niazi, the martial law administrator of East Pakistan, guessing about where the major thrust was coming from. A perfect political-military-intelligence synergy allowed India to dictate the pace of operations in 1971 war with Pakistan.

Lt. Gen. JS Aurora laid down that one brigade attack would be launched per week during the twilight period before the commencement of formal hostilities. These attacks were primarily to sharpen the claws of the Mukti Bahini. Whenever the Mukti Bahini came into grips of the enemy, the Indian Army was to be close by, virtually breathing down its neck. 

One of the fiercest early encounters took place in late October in Lt. Gen. Sagat Singh’s IV Corps Sector, right on the border between Tripura and East Pakistan and about 35 kilometre south-east of the important town of Maulvi Bazaar. The Pakistan post at Dhalai, built in a tea estate, overlooked the strategically important Indian town of Kamalpur which was serviced by a small air strip. The task to capture Dhalai was initially given to Mukti Bahini. Their assault on Pakistani positions in the Tea factory area went unsuccessful. The highly fortified Dhalai post had concrete bunkers strong enough to withstand medium artillery shells with wire and punjees laid all around. Besides the main post, there were tea factory and Officers' bungalows extending approximately 750 m and other defended posts extending approximately 950 to 1100 m. It was revealed that the Pakistan strength at Dhalai complex was one regular platoon reinforced with Razakars at Dhalai BOP, one regular company plus Razakars at Patrakhala and one regular platoon plus Razakars at Kurma Chara.

The Indian army then took the task of capturing Dhalai. The picturesque tea estate saw a pitched battle between 61 Mountain Brigade (Mtn Bde) under Brig. SDS Yadav, 1 East Bengal Rifles (EBR), 2 JAT Regiment (JAT) and 7 Rajputana Rifles (RAJ RIF) supported by an artillery brigade of Indian army  against the 12 Frontier Force Rifles (FFR) of Pakistan army from 14 Division. 1 EBR attempted to capture Dhalai on 27/28 October but was repulsed. In retaliation, Pakistani artillery opened fire on Kamalpur. Lt. Gen. Sagat ordered 2 JAT commanded by Lt. Col. Dalal to go forward to Dhalai and silence the guns. Five patrols were sent out on the night of 29/30 October and it was confirmed that Pakistan was holding the following posts in the Dhalai complex with 3 coys:

• Dhalai BOP-one coy.

• (b) Twin Hut

• (c) Red Hut-one coy

• (d) Coolie Lines-one coy.

Unknown to 2 JATs, Pakistan had also moved in 30 Frontier Force Rifles (FFR), on a counter - attack role and placed them in the Coolie lines.

The attack rolled in with a coy establishing the road block on the night of 30 October. B coy under Maj. R Kanwar captured Coolie Lines where each house had been fortified into a bunker. C coy, however, ran into serious trouble. Maj. JPS Panwar personally led the assault on the Twin Huts, but a bullet stopped him in his tracks and he could not reach the objective. Sub. Siri Chand, second in command, then led the assault. Twin Huts was captured, but C coy had not yet consolidated on their objectives when Pakistan counter attacked with artillery and MMG support. The artillery support let the JATs down, as the Forward observation officer decided to return to the unit firm base along with the wounded Maj. Panwar and C coy suffered heavy casualties. Naib Sub. Umed Singh and 15 dead OR were picked up later. The Pakistani counter-attack pushed C coy back to Ganganagar.

Maj. Pritam Singh, coy commander of D coy moved in to capture the Red hut area, but was wounded in the leg in the early stages of action. The Red Hut had a 3 tier set up of bunkers and was held by one coy strength as remnants of Pakistani defenders withdrawing from Coolie Lines had also concentrated there. Sub. Diwan Singh, who led the attack himself was killed. Sub. Adjt Gulzari Lal followed up the attack but was also wounded. After a stiff fight, portions of the Red Hut area were captured. 2 JAT had no anti-tank weapons to destroy the bunkers. Therefore, the attack was not pressed further. 2 JAT suffered very heavy casualties and its morale was at a low ebb. To make matters worse. Brig. SDS Yadav was wounded near the Coolie Lines and one coy of 7 Raj Rif had to be detailed under Maj. Avtar Singh, who got wounded en route evacuating the commander.

With one coy written off as casualties, one coy on the road block, the battalion was fighting the coming battle of attrition and beating back enemy counter-attacks with just two coys. The total killed were 44 including 2 JCOs. The total wounded were 89 including 3 officers. The Indian Army was fighting a battle which was going to alter its destiny. Lt. Gen. Sagat assumed command of the situation. The place of Brig. Yadav was taken over by Brig. KP Pande, who was a brave gunner who believed in out fighting the enemy. 

Lt. Gen. Sagat tasked 2 JAT to firm in the Coolie Lines and take on the enemy counter-attack. 7 Raj Rif was given the task of capturing Dhalai BOP on 1 November. The grit paid off as Pakistan’s 30 FFR mounted fierce counter-attacks on the JAT positions on 31 October. The battalion was decimated due to heavy casualties but 2 JAT redeemed itself and all counter-attacks were repulsed. 61 Mtn Bde's attack, launched later was a coup-de grace. Pakistani troops under the command of Maj. Javed fought valiantly against the Indian troops. After suffering fair number of casualties as result of fierce resistance put up by Frontier Force, Indian army was able to capture Dhalai. Maj. Javed was killed in the battle and Pakistan troops in the area withdrew.

After the capture, the tea estate was used as one of the many launch pads for the subsequent offensive. The battle lasted until 3 November 1971. IAF operations commenced with a few intrusive reconnaissance missions carried out by IAF Hunters of No. 37 Squadron in October and early November to collect information about the deployment of PAF assets in Dacca (now Dhaka) and Army deployments in the Jamalpur, Sherpur and Comilla area.

✍🏻Pastiche