Courage amid terror: Ordinary men at extraordinary times

In an act of unprecedented terror almost akin to the US’ 9/11, India 26/11 saw bravery from unsung heroes, who proved their mettle and acted in dire hours to save innocent lives from getting exhumed in the terror atrocities.

Aman Kanth
“Cowards die many times before their deaths; The valiant never taste the death but once.” William Shakespeare As a nation that has been constantly battling militants, terrorism is not new to India. As per CIA publication, terrorism is defined as the “threat or use of violence for political purposes when such action is intended to influence the attitude and behaviour of a target group other than the immediate victim and its ramifications transcend national boundaries.” Terrorism is an atrocious act, where in the name of faith and religion, communal and political passion is incited with sham ideologies, thereby creating havoc in the peaceful lives of individuals. Such acts lead to poisoning of the social fabric of a nation spewing hate crimes and hostility on innocents in the name of God. The case of India is no different as it has been a soft target of communal forces that are hell bent on creating a rift among people and dislodging its social harmony. The recent act of terror on Mumbai is a glaring example of how dark forces of terrorism wish to jeopardize the national integrity of India, thereby killing innocents. Down the memory lane, 26th November 2008 will not pass as any ordinary day. It will be remembered as the Black Day where hundreds of innocents were killed and maimed in Mumbai terror, an act plotted by heinous LeT terrorists – a Pakistan based terror outfit. This fateful day brings forth traumatic and excruciatingly painful memories of well-orchestrated terror attacks on Mumbai, where 183 people lost their lives and 293 got injured; tearing down the social fabric of the financial capital of India. The gruesome terror attacks began on 26th November and continued till 29th November, where Indian security services killed 9 out of 10 terrorists and captured one fanatic (Ajmal Amir Kasab, 21) alive to regain control of South Mumbai terror sites i.e. the Leopold Café, the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Taj Mahal, the Oberoi & Trident, Cama Hospital and Nariman House. In the gruesome act of terror, Mumbai lost hundreds of lives including those of civilians, foreign nationals and policemen (15 policemen and 2 NSG Commandos). However, it was the valiant security services and the local police that saved Mumbai from the jaws of terror while sacrificing its brave heroes in the line of duty – Mumbai ATS Chief Hemant Karkare, Mumbai ACP Ashok Kamte, encounter expert Vijay Salaskar, Inspector Shasank Shinde, NSG Commando Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan and Commando Gajender Singh Bisht, who were given a tearful farewell and a martyr’s honour. In an act of unprecedented terror almost akin to the US’ 9/11, India 26/11 saw bravery from unsung heroes, who proved their mettle and acted in dire hours to save innocent lives from getting exhumed in the terror atrocities. Mumbai’s saviours were not just men in uniform from Mumbai Police, MARCOS, ATS or NSG; there were some ordinary men who showed extraordinary courage at the time of terror. Some of the prominent names that come to our mind in the Mumbai 26/11 include: • Taj Mahal hotel’s maintenance staff Rajan Kamble did not bother bullet injuries while saving guests from dreaded terrorists. Kamble gave his life to save a Mangeshkar couple. • A team of security personnel from South Africa holidaying in Taj Mahal fought terrorists with mere kitchen knives and were successful in enabling escape of numerous hostages through the kitchen door. These foreign security personnel kept their nerves and showed exemplary courage under fire. • Dariusz Sobiczcwski of Poland saved an Indian family from asphyxiation. • Mumbai’s Vishnu Datta Ram Zende displayed rare courage by directing travellers to leave CST through Gate 1, saved many lives. • Another brave man who showed exemplary courage was Nitin Minocha, a chef at Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel who led more than 200 diners into The Chambers to safety. In this attempt, six employees of Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel were ruthlessly slain by terrorists and Minocha was struck with two bullets. • Karambir Kang, the GM of Taj Mahal Palace and Tower Hotel who was busy saving the lives of tourists lost his wife Neeti, and children Uday Kang and Samar Kang to terror. • Well, the act of valour was not just limited to a few brave men, Sandra Samuel, a nanny by profession saved 2-year old Moshe Holtzman from the jaws of terror. However, Sandra Samuel is still guilt stricken as she was unable to save Moshe’s parents. During the chaotic Mumbai terror attacks, ordinary Mumbaikars came together from all walks of life to offer help. A group of young Sikhs offered food and water to security forces battling terrorists at Oberoi and Taj hotels. These young Sikhs volunteered for Gurudwara Shri Dashmesh Darbar, Sion and set up makeshift langars at numerous Gurudwaras and cooked food. These relentless volunteers supplied packed food and water to forces. Tired security personnel thanked the unyielding spirit of masses for their constant support in the hour of crisis. In order to help the defence forces in their fight against terror, chai wallahs chipped in with free food and shopping malls nearby the terror sites helped the media personnel in sending their crucial database to respective sources. Indeed, the common men played an instrumental role in the times of terror. In extraordinary circumstances, these people rose above the stature of mere human beings while serving humanity and their gesture of supreme sacrifice makes them immortal. Indeed, they are our unsung heroes - true sons of the soil, who laid their lives for the call of duty without thinking twice about the risk involved in their act. These ordinary people went out of their way to perform tasks that did not belong to their sphere nor were they exposed to such a situation before. It was their call to serve humanity that endowed them with indomitable faith and strength. These heroes of our nation did not shirk or budge to sacrifice their lives for others in the mindless act of terror. This brave act of humanity is a strong message to all those forces of terror, who are striving hard to disrupt Indian society in the name of religion and faith. Such cowardly act of terror fails to shake our faith and makes us only stronger to fight against terrorism with full force. These acts of individual gallant are prominent examples of faith, selflessness, compassion and humanity that cannot be annihilated by any terrorist or weapons of mass destruction.