12 SEPT 1940 – 31 MARCH 2022 FINAL SALUTE TO A WARRIOR!

Bainsla’s demise at 81 years of age has left a void, not just in the political realm, but in the societal realm where the people have lost a ‘warrior’ who not only wielded weapons of destruction in the army, but also wielded the weapon of truth, in his later life, all for the betterment of society

An eight decade long life, full of its highs and lows, strifes and achievements and most of all full of zeal to work not for self, but for others — this is how Colonel Kirori Singh Bainsla would perhaps have wanted his obituary to read.

Bainsla’s demise at 81 years of age has left a void, not just in the political realm, but in the societal realm where the people have lost a ‘warrior’ who not only wielded weapons of destruction, but also wielded the weapon of truth, all for the betterment of society.

Perhaps that is why, at his demise, even though he never contested any election or held a constitutional position in the nation, yet the honour and respect he earned through his sheer grit to do what was the need of the hour, earned him the love of lakhs of people, across community lines.

Rajasthan is a land of myriad communities and different cultures, but Colonel Bainsla transcended all boundaries and was equally respected and accepted by all sections of the society, a feat rarely achieved by even the tallest of politicians.

Therefore, the congregation of about a lakh people for the last rites and funeral of the ‘Colonel’ is just a mere glimpse of the vast reach Bainsla had in the hearts of the people of the state.

The eventful life of this ‘warrior’ began when he became a teacher but soon after Kirori Singh Bainsla enlisted in the army as a sepoy, following in the footsteps of his father who served in the British Indian Army.

He fought in the Sino-Indian war of 1962 and Indo-Pakistan War of 1965 and was taken a prisoner of war in the latter, but had the courage not to accept the supremacy of his captors, thereby being christened with the name ‘Rock of Gibraltar’ by his seniors in the army.

From Rock of Gibraltar, Bainsla donned another cap, rather a turban this time and came to be addresed as ‘Patri Baba’, after his clarion call to the youth of Gurjar community to take to railway lines and halt movement of trains during the Reservation agitation. Interestingly, regarding the Gurjar leader, journalist Sambrat Chaturvedi remembers that Bainsla had once told him that a leader is like ‘Paras Pathar’.

Just like Paras turns a metal to gold, similarly, a leader too does the same thing. But just as Paras itself remains a stone and does not turn to gold, similarly, a true leader’s worth would be realised by society only once he has departed!

Perhaps that is why, during the over 200 kilometre long journey back to his ancestral Mundia village, the ‘cavalcade’ was stopped multiple times by the people who wanted to pay their respects to ‘Baba’, as he had come to be addressed off late, all amidst the chants of ‘Baba Teri Nek Kamai, Tune Soti Kaum Jagai’!