Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey of 1/11 Gorkha Rifles cleared four enemy positions before Khalubar on the night of 2/3 July 1999 and was killed.
Four positions below Khalubar
On the night of 2/3 July 1999, 1/11 Gorkha Rifles was advancing on Khalubar in the Batalik sector when fire from the surrounding heights came down on its Number 5 Platoon. The platoon commander, Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey, was told to clear those positions before daylight caught the battalion exposed.
He moved the platoon to better ground and sent one section to the right. He took the four positions on the left himself.
At the first he killed two enemy soldiers. At the second he killed two more. At the third he was hit in the shoulder and legs. He kept going and led the assault on the fourth, urging his men on and destroying it with a grenade as a medium machine gun burst killed him.
The citation credits this action with giving the companies the firm base from which Khalubar was captured.
From Sitapur to 1/11 Gorkha Rifles
He was born on 25 June 1975 and was a native of Rudha village in Sitapur district. He attended Sainik School, Lucknow, then the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy. The citation names him as a Lieutenant, while the awards portal and PIB use Captain.
His old school now carries the name Manoj Kumar Pandey UP Sainik School, Lucknow.
The citation
LIEUTENANT MANOJ KUMAR PANDEY (IC-56959), 1/11 GORKHA RIFLES. (POSTHUMOUS) (Effective date of the Award : 02nd July, 1999)
Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey, a young officer of the 1/11 Gorkha Rifles, took part in a series of boldly led attacks during Operation VIJAY, forcing back the intruders with heavy losses in Batalik, including the capture of Jaubar Top.
His finest hour was during the advance to Khalubar, when he was Number 5 Platoon Commander. On the night of 02/03 July 1999, as the platoon approached its final objective, it came under heavy and intense enemy fire from the surrounding heights. The officer was tasked to clear the interfering enemy positions, so as to prevent his battalion from getting daylighted, being in a vulnerable position. The officer quickly moved his platoon to an advantageous position under intense enemy fire and sent one section to clear the enemy positions from the right, while he himself proceeded to clear four other enemy positions on the left. Fearlessly assaulting the first enemy position, he killed two enemy personnel and proceeded to assault the second and destroyed it by killing two more enemy personnel. Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey was injured on the shoulder and legs by enemy fire while clearing the third position. Undaunted and without caring for his grievous injury, he led the assault on the fourth position urging his men and destroyed the same with a grenade, even as he got a fatal Medium Machine Gun burst on his forehead. It is this singular dare devil act of the officer, which provided the critical firm base for the companies, which finally led to capture of Khalubar.
Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey, thus showed most conspicuous bravery, indomitable courage, exemplary personal valour, outstanding leadership and devotion to duty of an exceptionally high order, in the face of enemy and made the supreme sacrifice in the highest traditions of the Army.
Source: Ministry of Defence gallantry awards record. Reproduced as printed, including any errors in the original.
Cover image: Krishna Chaitanya Velaga, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Resized for this page. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lieutenant_M_K_Pandey_statue_at_Param_Yodha_Sthal_Delhi.jpg