The Rajputana Rifles

Bushire, 1856

When the 20th Bombay Native Infantry stormed the fort at Bushire during the Persian campaign of 1856, three of its men were put up for the Victoria Cross. Only Captain John Augustus Wood received it. Subedar Major Mohammed Sharief and Subedar Peer Bhatt were turned down because the decoration was not then open to Indians. The 20th is the ancestor of the regiment's 2nd Battalion, and Wood's award is recorded as the first VC won in an Indian unit.

The regiment's roots lie in the Rajputs recruited by the East India Company in the eighteenth century. In January 1775 the Company raised its first local infantry units, among them the 5th Battalion, Bombay Sepoys. That battalion's seniority gives the regiment its claim to being the oldest rifle regiment in the Indian Army, though the battalion itself left the regiment on 1 September 1949, when it became the 3rd Battalion of the Brigade of the Guards.

Other battalions came from the same Bombay line. The 4th, known as Outram's, dates from 26 May 1820, and the 5th, known as Napier's, began the same year as the 1st Extra Battalion of Bombay Native Infantry. In 1921 six regiments were combined into the 6th Rajputana Rifles. The numeral was dropped in 1945, and in 1947 the regiment was allotted to the Indian Army. The 17th Battalion has a separate origin as the Sawai Man Guards of the Jaipur State Forces, dating from 1934.

Two VCs for one battalion

The 4th Battalion, 6th Rajputana Rifles, won two Victoria Crosses in the Second World War, and both winners were killed in the actions for which they were decorated.

Subedar Richhpal Ram was second in command of a leading company in the assault on Italian positions at Keren, Eritrea, on the night of 7 to 8 February 1941. His company commander was wounded and he took over, leading the attack to the final objective. The position was cut off and he held it against six counter-attacks. With the ammunition gone, he brought a handful of survivors back to the battalion. On 12 February he led his company again. His right foot was blown off and he was then mortally wounded. The last words attributed to him are "We'll capture the objective." He was 41.

Company Havildar Major Chhelu Ram fought at Djebel Garci in Tunisia on the night of 19 to 20 April 1943, during an attack by the 5th Indian Infantry Brigade. He silenced a machine-gun post with a Tommy gun, working alone. He was badly wounded while attending to his company commander, who was dying. He then took command of the company and of men from another, and reorganised them. During a heavy counter-attack he was wounded again, this time fatally. His citation records the words he used to rally them: "Jats and Mohammedans, there must be no withdrawal!" He refused to be carried back and went on giving orders until he lost consciousness. He is buried at Sfax War Cemetery.

South of Tithwal, July 1948

The 6th Battalion moved to the Tithwal sector for the offensive that opened on 11 July 1948. At about 0130 on 18 July, D Company attacked a hill feature held by Pakistani troops. The approach was a path about a metre wide with ravines on either side and bunkers overlooking it. The company had 51 casualties within half an hour.

Company Havildar Major Piru Singh led a section at the front of the assault. He took a medium machine-gun post with bayonet and Sten gun, and went on to a second post. Grenade fragments wounded him and blinded him in one eye. When his Sten ammunition ran out he threw grenades at another post and killed two men there with the bayonet. He was shot in the head and threw a last grenade as he fell. His citation notes that more than half his section had by then been killed or wounded. The Param Vir Chakra was awarded posthumously under a gazette notification of 16 January 1952.

Tololing, June 1999

The 2nd Battalion attacked Tololing Top, Point 4590 in the Drass sector, on the night of 12 to 13 June 1999. Major Vivek Gupta commanded the leading company, C Company. Three men of the forward section were hit as the company climbed under heavy fire. Gupta fired a rocket launcher at the enemy position and charged. He was hit by two bullets, reached the position and killed three men in close combat, and the rest of the company took the position behind him. He was hit again and died of his wounds. He received a posthumous Maha Vir Chakra.

Digendra Kumar of the same battalion commanded a light machine-gun group in the assault and kept firing after being hit in the left arm, which allowed his men to close with the position. He too received the Maha Vir Chakra. The battalion carries Tololing as a battle honour, with Kargil as the theatre honour.

At a glance

• Raised: First local units raised January 1775, including the 5th Battalion, Bombay Sepoys; six regiments combined as the 6th Rajputana Rifles in 1921
• Regimental centre: Delhi Cantonment
• Motto: Veer Bhogya Vasundhara (The brave shall inherit the earth)
• War cry: Raja Ramchandra ki Jai