Remembering Nehru & his "Himalayan blunders"

China fought the 1962 war while in the throes of economic hardship. It's forces were hardly elite, mostly comprising regiments of local military. Their equipment and logistics were poor. Yet they overpowered the Indians. In that short war of two weeks--China called for a unilateral ceasefire as quickly as it had gained ground--India lost 1383 of its soldiers; 1047 were wounded, 1696 were missing.

Our only clue to 1962 China War is a book by Australian journalist Neville Maxwell: India's China War. He could pen it down by accessing the Henderson (Brooks)--(Premindra Singh) Bhagat report which had been commissioned in the wake of 1962 War disaster. Even Maxwell could copy only a part of the report which the Indian government had classified as "top secret."

It's been over a half century yet the Henderson-Bhagat report as well as various correspondences of Nehru are out of reach--being treated as "private property' of Nehru Library, a private trust. The papers of India's first prime minister belongs to his family and not to the state!!! The classified secret clause of "30 years" is long over yet the report isn't being made public.

That's how truth in this country is treated. Everyone tries to muzzle changes in school text books and academia in light of new findings so that their narrative remains perpetuated. Doesn't the history of this country deserve a revision when important annals of this country are being kept locked in the form of documents inside safety vaults?

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