(TibetanReview.net, Nov04’24) – India’s hold on Tawang was apparently tenuous after the 1914 convention among the nationalist Kuomintang ruled China, British India and independent Tibet put the territory that now constitutes the state of Arunachal Pradesh under New Delhi’s rule. And so, in 1951, an assistant political officer of the erstwhile North East Frontier Agency (NEFA) and the present-day Arunachal Pradesh carried out an audacious operation to bring Tawang under the Indian Union, reported the PTI news agency Nov 3.
That was the year in which China annexed Tibet under extreme duress of untold bloodshed.
Seventy-three years later, on Oct 31, a museum of valour was inaugurated in Tawang in memory of the unsung hero, Major Ralengnao Bob Khathing, the report said.
The “Major Ralengnao Bob Khathing Museum of Valour” was inaugurated virtually by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh from Tezpur in Assam as he could not fly to Tawang due to bad weather.
Khathing, a Manipuri Naga, was given the order by the then Assam governor Jairamdas Daulatram to march towards Tawang with 200 soldiers of the Assam Rifles and 400 porters on Jan 17, 1951, from Chariduwar, near Tezpur.
The report noted that before World War II, Tawang was under the administrative control of the then independent Tibetan government. Despite several attempts, the British could not annex it.
Upon arriving in Tawang, Khathing was stated to have found the local Monpa community reeling under harsh taxes imposed by the Tibetan administration. And he was stated to have told them that the democratic India would never impose unjustified taxes on them.
Soon, with the Assam Rifles men, Khathing took control of Tawang. The Tricolour was hoisted in Tawang and Bumla, and the area became part of India, the report said.
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The idea of setting up the museum to honour Khathing, about whom very little is known in the country, was the stated to be the brainchild of Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu.
Arunachal Pradesh Governor Lt Gen (retd) K T Parnaik, Khandu, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh and several state ministers were stated to have attended the inauguration of the museum on Oct 31. Khathing’s family members were also stated to be present at the function.
Besides, India’s Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi and several top military officers were stated to be virtually present along with the defence minister in Tezpur.
“Major Khathing not only led the peaceful integration of Tawang into India but also established essential military and security frameworks, including Sashastra Seema Bal, Nagaland Armed Police, and Naga Regiment,” defence minister Singh has said.
Khathing was a student leader, an Army major, part of the team which brought Hyderabad under the Indian Union, a civil servant, an MLA, a minister in Manipur and India’s ambassador to Myanmar, Rijiju, the MP from Arunachal West, the Lok Sabha constituency under which Tawang falls, has said.
Chief Minister Khandu has said the inauguration of the museum is a tribute to the iconic role played by a true son of ‘Maa Bharati’, his bravery and sacrifice.
Khandu has said Khathing’s expedition in 1951 secured Tawang and established Indian administration in this remote region in a final gift to the country. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s first home minister, directed the then Assam governor to take the necessary steps to bring Tawang under Indian administration, the report added.
The museum also beautifully showcases the rich culture and heritage of the local Monpa community, along with compelling narratives of the 1962 India-China war, the report added.