Tribute paid to bravery, resilience of Major Tufail Mohammad Shaheed Nishan-e-Haider

ISLAMABAD (92 News) – The Pak Army has paid a tribute to bravery and resilience of Major Tufail Mohammad Shaheed Nishan-e-Haider. In a tweet, DG ISPR Babar Iftikhar said: "Despite being mortally wounded during the combat, Major Tufail Mohammad Shaheed completed the mission and embraced martyrdom setting a noble precedence of valour and determination." Major Tufail was born in Hoshiarpur in 1914 and commissioned in the 16 Punjab Regiment in 1943. After a distinguished career, which included several instructional and command appointments in his own Battalion and also in the Civil Armed Forces, he was posted to the East Pakistan Rifles in 1958 as a Company Commander. Also in August, Indian troops captured a village in East Pakistan. Major Tufail divided his men in three groups and it was decided that they would launch the assault during the dark hours of 7th August. He encircled an illegal Indian post, which violated the internationally recognized boundary between the two countries, in the Lakshmipur area. When major Tufail group was about 15 yards away from the enemy, they came under heavy fire and three bullets pierced through the major’s stomach. Despite the shower of blood from his stomach, he kept moving forward and silenced the machinegun with a grenade. When another enemy machine-gun opened fire, killing his second in command, Major Tufail destroyed that gun too with a well-aimed grenade. During the hand-to-hand encounter that followed, he noticed the commander of the Indian post moving silently to attack one of his men. Though fatally wounded, Major Tufail crawled towards the enemy commander. He stretched out one of his legs and as the enemy stumbled, he hit him in the face with his steel helmet, thus saving his troop. Major continued directing the operation until the enemy was driven out leaving behind four dead and three prisoners. Due to loss of so much blood, Major Tufail fell on the ground, and then got up and said to his officer “I have completed my duty. The enemy is on the run”. Major Tufail was taken to hospital but he later he died the same day, the 7th August 1958.