KARGIL VIJAY DIWAS WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT

On the 26th Kargil Vijay Diwas today, the commanding officers of Major Rajesh Adhikari and Captain Keishing Clifford Nongrum-recipients of Maha Vir Chakra (posthumous)-recount how these two young officers braved brutal terrains, led from the front and laid down their lives to turn the tide of battle

- Neha Sharma

'He knew the operation had to be over before daybreak and he made sure it was'

Captain Keishing Clifford Nongrum's commanding officer during the Kargil War, Col Virendra Bhalothia (Retd), remembers him vividly as the "darling of his men".

"They were ready to die for him," Col Bhalothia recalls. "He was commanding a sub-unit of 20-25 men and would go with them everywhere - even when it wasn't necessary. They were fully capable of carrying out the task themselves, but he'd still accompany them. So they truly loved and looked up to him," he adds.

It's no surprise then that when eight of his men were killed during the assault on Point 4812 on the night of June 30 (1999), Captain Clifford was "infuriated". He charged towards enemy bunkers, firing, hurling grenades and killing six enemy soldiers in close combat.

Just hours earlier, Clifford and his team had scaled a vertical cliff, catching the enemy off guard. But their column was soon pinned down under heavy fire. "Clifford knew time was running out. If we didn't dislodge the enemy before daybreak, we'd be sitting ducks," says Col Bhalothia, who shared handwritten notes about the officer and the operation with us. "He moved to the second bunker, where an enemy machine gun was creating havoc, and attempted to snatch it. At that point, enemy soldiers from the third bunker spotted him and fired a volley of bullets that hit him." Captain Clifford's sheer bravery and disregard for personal safety stunned the enemy, giving his men a chance to regroup and continue the assault. True to the spirit of 12 JAKLI, the post was overrun before daybreak.