Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami of the Special Forces, who took part in back-to-back operations in Jammu and Kashmir which resulted in killing of 10 terrorists in 11 days before being martyred, was on T
Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami of the Special Forces, who took part in back-to-back operations in Jammu and Kashmir which resulted in killing of 10 terrorists in 11 days before being martyred, was on Tuesday posthumously awarded the Ashok Chakra, the country’s highest peacetime gallantry award, by President Pranab Mukherjee. The award was received by Goswami’s widow Bhavna Goswami at the Republic Day.
Sources said that Goswami had been actively involved in three such operations in which 10 terrorists were killed and one captured alive in 11 days. In the first operation, three LeT terrorists were killed in Khurmur, Handwara on August 23.
Then he again volunteered for a second back-to-back operation in which three more Lashkar terrorists were killed and another, Sajjad Ahmad, alias Abu Ubed Ullah, was captured alive during the two-day fierce gunfight in Rafiabad on August 26-27.
Goswami once again volunteered to be part of an ongoing operation launched in the dense Hafruda forest near Kupwara, Kashmir. This was his last operation but not before he killed two terrorists. According to the citation, at about 8.15 pm on September 2, there was a fierce encounter with four terrorists wherein two of his comrades were injured and pinned down. He along with his fellow fighter dashed forward to rescue their injured colleagues, knowing well the risks to their own lives.
“He first assisted in eliminating one terrorist. Sensing grave danger to three of his wounded colleagues, Lance Naik Mohan with utter disregard to his own personal safety, charged at the remaining terrorists drawing intense fire from them. He was hit in the thigh. Unmindful, he closed in and eliminated one terrorist, injured another and was again shot in the abdomen. Undeterred by his injuries, he hurled himself on the last terrorist and killed him at point blank range before succumbing to his wounds,” the citation read.
He was awarded Ashok Chakra (posthumous) for exhibiting most conspicuous gallantry in personally eliminating two terrorists and assisting in evacuation of his wounded colleagues.
