Indian Army’s Maj Gen TK Kaul is one of those inspired souls who changed their ways to prepare a nation for tolerance more than for a “killer instinct”. He did not fail to observe that these brave warriors of freedom struggle too had to rest their rifles when there came a point where the nation and its scattered communities needed compassion and awareness about their being one.

1. Do not play with freedom. It’s priceless: Gen Tej Kaul
“Most of us take the freedom we have got lightly. And we hardly ever give it a
thought. Rarely do we pause to learn and see what extreme efforts it took to
achieve this freedom and how we are treating it,” Maj Gen TK Kaul said in one
of his speeches during the Know Your Army campaign, his well-known novel
initiative.
If you had a chance to interact with a freedom fighter and listen to the stories he
had to tell, you will know how hard life was under foreign rule. He will tell you
how people fought unceasingly, for years together, to build up the resistance
that pushed away the foreign domination.
A narration of those gruelling moments of freedom struggle will make you
realise what all the people went through then. Your hand will automatically go
up to salute those war heroes who persisted against the mighty rule, without
caring for their lives, inspired by the dream of liberating their motherland.
Those who fought the war against suppression, those who witnessed it closely,
and those who belong to such valiant families only can know the value of
freedom; only they understand truly what the peace, which we experience
today, has cost us; only they know the pain of the divide in the society; only
they know the damage such differences cause in the long term to an otherwise
great nation.
The leaders that fought this great war of freedom, with fierce patriotism in their
hearts, faced unbelievable odds before they finally brought down India’s
oppressors. Many of them lost their lives. The entire generation silently
mourned, for years, the loss of their gallant leaders in the onslaught that
followed the uprising.
Indian Army’s Gen Tej Kaul is one of those inspired souls who changed their
ways to prepare a nation for tolerance more than for a “killer instinct”. He did
not fail to observe that these brave warriors of freedom struggle too had to rest
their rifles when there came a point where the nation and its scattered
communities needed compassion and awareness about their being one. They
decided to give up war and took up noble work with equal magnanimity.
It was time for compassion because the freedom after the long British rule came
with a huge side effect. Division. The pain of separating a piece of the nation

2. itself was much severe than the pain of amputated limbs and arms. Before this
political decision to draw a line was made, the country’s people belonged to
both sides of the border, and people of both sides of the border belonged to the
same country.
The twist of fate made the brave men, who fought with passion without asking
for a break, realise the futility of war. The division of the nation calmed them
down. And their mission changed.
The mission now was to create awareness and retain the oneness of the country.
A section of people dedicated their lives to bridge this gap, bring back the lost
warmth among communities.
Gen Tej Kaul belongs to the series of leaders who have inherited this mission.
Decorated with some of the top military honours during his 40 years of service
the Indian Armed Forces, he continued to work even after retirement.
Currently, as the Executive President of the peace project -- India Pakistan
Soldiers Initiative (IPSI) – he continues his work of making the common man
realise the vanity of engaging in war. His enormous contribution to IPSI has
brought great results in the form of changed perceptions on both sides of the
border.
As a man who brought about such unbelievable change, besides handling
militancy areas in critical areas like Jammu as a Brigade Commander, isn’t it
worth listening to Maj Gen TK Kaul on this crucial issue.