A commander who led from the front

Lt Gen Mohinder Puri (retd)

Major Gen Randhir Sinh, 3rd Gorkha Rifles, passed away peacefully in his sleep on March 21. A regimental officer, I had known Randhir for over four decades and have wonderful memories of our association. I first met Randhir during our Weapons Course at Infantry School, Mhow, in the late 1960s and the first impression which struck me was his friendliness, his sense of humour and his straightforwardness in his dealings with all. Over the years, I had seen him develop as a mature officer, an excellent and courageous commander and a meticulous staff officer. 

I have read a number of laudatory tributes to Randhir on social media from officers who have served under him, and the most striking of these are about his high morals, maintaining the highest standards of integrity, his professionalism and selfless devotion to the mission in hand. All these outstanding qualities manifested themselves in the command of his battalion, brigade and division. Physically tough, he visited all the posts in Siachen during the command of the brigade and similarly in 25 Infantry Division, perhaps a rare feat unmatched by many.

Randhir was a second-generation officer. His father, late Lt Col Duleep Sinh, raised 4/3 Gorkha Rifles, later commanded by Randhir and his son Uday. Three generations of the family commanding the same battalion is indeed a rare distinction. Of the many facets of his personality, what really struck me was when I was the Military Secretary and Randhir’s name was regrettably not cleared by the promotion board. It was indeed a shock and I asked him to put in a complaint. In his inimitable way, he told me since the organisation did not consider him fit for promotion, putting in a complaint was the last thing he would do. I have not known officers of such high moral standards and Randhir did stand a couple of notches above us.

Since we were from the same regiment, I socially met Randhir on a number of occasions and saw how wonderfully he related and interacted with the men. He would join them in singing Nepali songs and dance with them with rhythm and grace. After his retirement, he settled in his ancestral home at Rajpipla near Baroda, where he authored a book worth reading, A Talent for War: The Military Biography of Lt Gen Sagat Singh. He was the aide-de-camp to Lt Gen Sagat Singh during the 1971 war. 

Loved by his troops and admired by his peers and subordinates, Randhir leaves a void in the regiment which will be difficult to fill. Farewell, dear friend.