Om Prakash Malhotra

General Om Prakash Malhotra, PVSM (6 August 1922 – 29 December 2015), best known as OP Malhotra, was a senior army officer in the Indian Army who served as the 13th Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army from 1978 – 1981. Upon retiring from his military service in India, he served in the Indian Foreign Service when he tenured as the Indian Ambassador to Indonesia 1981-1984, and later served as a political administrator in India as the Governor of Punjab and Administrator of Chandigarh 1990-1991.

This article is about the soldier. For the lawyer, see Om Prakash Malhotra (advocate).

General

Om Prakash Malhotra

PVSM
Born(1922-08-06)6 August 1922
Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, British Raj
Died29 December 2015(2015-12-29) (aged 93)
Gurgaon, Haryana, India
Allegiance British India
 India
Service/branch British Indian Army
 Indian Army
Years of service1941–1981
Rank General
Service numberIC-478[1]
Unit
Commands held
Battles/wars
Awards
Spouse(s)Saroj Malhotra
Other work

Early life

Malhotra was born in Srinagar, Kashmir, on 6 August 1922 and received his schooling first at Model High School, Srinagar, and then at Sri Pratap College, Srinagar. He then attended Government College, Lahore, before being selected to join the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun.

Military career

He was commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery as a Second Lieutenant in November 1941. His first assignment was with 26 (Jacobs) Mountain Battery in Razmak, North West Frontier Province. He was later assigned to 15 (Jhelum) Mountain Battery which, as part of the 50th Parachute Brigade, fought against the Japanese during the Second World War on the Burmese front. He distinguished himself as a young officer in the Battle of Sangshak where he was wounded in action.[2][3] He later became Second-in-Command of 13 (Dardoni) Mountain Battery.

Malhotra became an instructor at the School of Artillery in Deolali, and in 1946 attended the Long Gunnery Staff Course at the Royal School of Artillery in Larkhill, United Kingdom. He commanded artillery regiments across India between November 1950 and July 1961 including 37 Coorg Anti Tank Regiment, 20 Locating Regiment[4] and 42 Field Regiment. In between he served at Army HQ, New Delhi, did the Defense Services Staff College course at Wellington and was later an instructor at the Defense Services Staff College, Wellington. He was then posted from 1962-1965 as the Military and Naval Attaché of India to the USSR, concurrently accredited to Poland and Hungary.

Upon return from Moscow in August 1965, Malhotra commanded 1 Artillery Brigade, part of 1 Armoured Division and fought in Sialkot Sector during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.[5] After the ceasefire with Pakistan he commanded 167 Mountain Brigade at Sela Pass, Tawang District, North-East Frontier Agency. He was promoted to acting Major General in September 1967 and commanded 36 Infantry Division in Saugor for two years, with a promotion to substantive major-general on 28 February 1968.[6] From 29 September 1969 till May 1972 he was Chief of Staff, IV Corps, in Tezpur during the Bangladesh Liberation War.[7] He played a crucial role during the Battle of Sialkot during the Bangladesh Liberation War where, "the thrust by the 1 Artillery Brigade under his command forced Pakistan to thin forces from its main attack column that had overrun Khemkaran and was making a bid to drive a wedge through the heart of Punjab."[8] Subsequently, he was promoted to acting lieutenant-general on 29 May 1972 (substantive from 15 October) and given command of XI Corps in Jalandhar, which he commanded for two years.[9] He was later the GOC-in-C Southern Command located at Pune.[10]

In 1976, Malhotra was awarded the Param Vishist Seva Medal for "service of the most exceptional order". He was Vice Chief of Army Staff before taking over as Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army on 31 May 1978 and serving in that post for three years. He was an Honorary Senior Colonel Commandant of the Regiment of Artillery of the Indian Army and also an Honorary General of the Nepalese Army.

Ambassador to Indonesia and Governor of Punjab

After retiring from the Indian Army on 31 May 1981, Malhotra served as the Ambassador of India to Indonesia from 1981-1984. During 1990-1991, he was the Governor of the Indian State of Punjab and Administrator of Chandigarh[11] when militancy in that state was at its height. Malhotra resigned from his post in protest when planned elections in the state were deferred by the National Election Commission without notice.[12] Upon the postponement of the elections he said that "I have been through three Wars, I have been a General in the Wars, but I have never felt as defeated as I feel today after this announcement by the Election Commission that the Elections have been postponed."[13]

Post-retirement

A keen sportsman, Malhotra was the Founder President of the Asian Equestrian Federation in 1978.[14] He was also the President of the Delhi Golf Club, New Delhi from 1979 - 1980.[15]

He served for nine years as the President of the Equestrian Federation of India a post which he took on while serving as Chief of Army Staff and continued in post-retirement.[16] He was responsible for the revival of the cavalry sport of Tent Pegging in India and across Asia,as an equestrian sport.[16] After a demonstration of the sport in New Delhi to HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, the serving President of International Federation for Equestrian Sports, approval was granted for its inclusion as an equestrian sport under regional governance which led to its inclusion in the Asian Games from 1981 onwards.[17]

Malhotra was a Founder Trustee of the Nehru Trust for the Indian Collections at the Victoria & Albert Museum,[18] and served as the President of India's largest NGO, the "National Association for the Blind" in New Delhi. He was the Chairperson of the National Association for the Blind Centre For Blind Women & Disability Studies.[19] He was an active member of Kiwanis Club of New Delhi, patron of the All India Federation of The Deaf,[20] and a Trustee of the Delhi Cheshire Homes.[21]

In addition, Malhotra was also the Founder and Chairman Emeritus of two charitable organisations Shiksha and Chikitsa.[22][23][24]

Personal life

Malhotra was married to Saroj, with whom he had two children. His son, Ajai Malhotra, was Ambassador of India to the Russian Federation from 2011 - 2013.

Death

Malhotra died at his home in Gurugram due to complications of old age on 29 December 2015.[25] On 31 December 2015 his funeral was held with full military honours at Brar Square.[26] As former Chief of Army Staff from the Regiment of Artillery his body was carried to the funeral on an artillery gun carriage.[27]

Honours and awards
  • 1976: Param Vishist Seva Medal for "service of the most exceptional order".
  • 1977: Honorary Senior Colonel Commandant of the Regiment of Artillery.
  • 1980: Honorary General of the Nepalese Army.
  • 1994: conferred the Degree of Doctor of Letters Honoris Causa by University of Jammu

Dates of rank
InsigniaRankComponentDate of rank
Second LieutenantBritish Indian Army9 November 1941 (emergency)[28]
LieutenantBritish Indian Army1 October 1942 (war-substantive)[28]
27 October 1945 (substantive; regular commission)[28]
CaptainBritish Indian Army3 January 1944 (acting)[28]
4 January 1944 (temporary)[28]
MajorBritish Indian Army4 January 1944 (acting)[28]
LieutenantIndian Army15 August 1947[note 1][29]
CaptainIndian Army22 April 1948[1][note 1][29]
CaptainIndian Army26 January 1950 (recommissioning and change in insignia)[29][30]
MajorIndian Army22 April 1955[31]
Lieutenant-ColonelIndian Army22 April 1958[32]
ColonelIndian Army13 October 1964[33]
BrigadierIndian Army26 May 1965[34]
Major GeneralIndian Army22 August 1967 (acting)[35]
28 February 1968[6]
Lieutenant-GeneralIndian Army29 May 1972 (acting)[9]
15 October 1972 (substantive)[36]
General
(COAS)		Indian Army1 June 1978[37]

Notes
  1. Upon independence in 1947, India became a Dominion within the British Commonwealth of Nations. As a result, the rank insignia of the British Army, incorporating the Tudor Crown and four-pointed Bath Star ("pip"), was retained, as George VI remained Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Armed Forces. After 26 January 1950, when India became a republic, the President of India became Commander-in-Chief, and the Ashoka Lion replaced the crown, with a five-pointed star being substituted for the "pip."
gollark: In American Forth, you have to... vote for what procedure to run next?
gollark: Soviet Forth and American Forth?
gollark: How has this implementation EVER WORKED CORRECTLY?!
gollark: It is not usable right now while I fix the timeshare bit.
gollark: For testing.

References
  1. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 6 September 1952. p. 193.
  2. Seaman, Harry (1989). The Battle At Sangshak: Prelude to Kohim. Leo Cooper. pp. 130, 132. ISBN 9780850527209.
  3. Graham, Brigadier General C. A. L. (1957). The History of the Indian Mountain Artillery. Gale & Polden. pp. 352, 353.
  4. "20 Surveillance and Target Acquisition". Sainik Samachar.
  5. Praval, Major KC (2013). Indian Army After Independence. Lancer. p. 548. ISBN 9781935501619.
  6. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 4 May 1968. p. 369.
  7. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 8 November 1969. p. 1095.
  8. http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/nation/led-from-front-even-as-punjab-governor/177026.html
  9. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 27 January 1973. p. 95.
  10. "The Official Home Page of the Indian Army". www.indianarmy.nic.in.
  11. Crossette, Barbara (19 December 1990). "Punjabis, Caught Between Sikh Rebels and New Delhi, Fear a Showdown". The New York Times. p. 3. Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  12. (2008) Grewal, J.S. The Cambridge History of India: The Sikhs of Punjab, pg. 287, Cambridge University Press, http://www.vidhia.com/Historical%20and%20Political/The_Sikhs_of_Punjab.pdf Archived 28 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  13. http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/lsdeb/ls10/ses1/0712079101.htm
  14. http://asianef.org/aboutaef/aboutaef/
  15. "Founder Members, Past Presidents & Captains". Delhigolfclub.org. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  16. http://efinf.org/tent_pegging.html
  17. http://www.efinf.org/tent_pegging.html
  19. http://nabcentreforwomen.org/our-profile/about-us/committees/
  20. http://www.aifdeaf.in/committee.htm%5B%5D
  21. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 9 September 2013. Retrieved 26 July 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  22. "Trustees of the NTICVA General Om Prakash Malhotra PVSM". Nehru Trust for the Indian Collections at the Victoria and Albert Mission. Nehru Trust. Retrieved 29 December 2015.</rg/trusteesef>
  23. "Org Summary". Guide Star India. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  24. "Board of Trustees". Chikitsa. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  25. ANI (29 December 2015). "Former COAS Gen. O P Malhotra passes away". Business Standard India. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  26. "COAS pays Tribute to Former COAS Gen Om Prakash Malhotra". pib.nic.in. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  27. "h6". www.sainiksamachar.nic.in. Retrieved 19 January 2017.
  28. Indian Army List (Special Edition) 1947. Government of India Press. 1947. pp. 249A.
  29. "New Designs of Crests and Badges in the Services" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 August 2017.
  30. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 11 February 1950. p. 227.
  31. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 23 June 1956. p. 127.
  32. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 27 August 1960. p. 217.
  33. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 13 November 1965. p. 583.
  34. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 2 April 1966. p. 583.
  35. "Army Appointments/Promotions" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 22 August 1967. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  36. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 10 February 1973. p. 187.
  37. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 22 July 1978. p. 714.
Military offices
Preceded by
Tapishwar Narain Raina		 Chief of Army Staff
1978–1981		 Succeeded by
Kotikalapudi Venkata Krishna Rao
Preceded by
A M Vohra		 Vice Chief of Army Staff
20 January 1977 - 31 May 1978		 Succeeded by
S L Menezes
Preceded by
Sartaj Singh		 General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Southern Command
1 August 1974 - 19 January 1977		 Succeeded by
A M Vohra
Government offices
Preceded by
Virendra Verma		 Governor of Punjab
1990–1991		 Succeeded by
Surendra Nath
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