A Son, a Friend, a Shaheed
Shabbir of Sabauna
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Sometimes I wonder what motivated him to approach death with such alacrity
My son always had a premonition where he was headed
Sometimes when I pine too deeply for him, he comes in my dream gesturing he has acknowledged my feelings

'Ammi Jee' in an interview fondly remembered her elder son
Maj Sharif had raised his kids on simple guidelines, hard work & honesty
Rule of thumb: کسب کمال کن کہ عزیزجہاں شوی
Achieve excellence and ye shall be loved by the world

Major Shabbir Sharif did the same and earned glory

In Miani Sahab Shabbir sleeps beside his best friend Tanveer who took his own life
His mother would see Tanveer in pain in her dreams
She had told Shabbir of her wish to have a saint or martyr buried beside him
Sometimes I feel Shabbir embraced shahadat for the sake of friendship

Maj Shabbir Sharif is the most decorated soldier of Pakistan Army
Upon his commission in 1964 he was awarded Sword of Honour at PMA
In 1965 Indo Pak war he earned Sitara e Jurrat
In 1971 War at Battle of Sabuana he was awarded the highest award for gallantry, Nishan e Haider

It was Sulemanki-Fazilka Sector in 1971 War
Maj Shabbir Sharif commanding B Company of 6 FF captured Ditch Cum Bund (DCB) on Sabuana Distributary with all important Beriwala Bridge intact
He effectively beat back major counter attacks by 3 Assam and 4 Jat causing heavy casualties

On night 4/5 Dec Maj Shabbir shot and killed 4 Jat’s company commander Maj Narain Singh
He himself got injured due to face burns from a smoke grenade
He stayed on front line and on 6 Dec while engaging enemy tanks, he was hit by fire of a tank machine gun and embraced shahadat

Beriwala bridge stayed with Pakistan till ceasefire
In numerous counter attack attempts 3 Assam & 4 Jat lost a number of gallant soldiers
An estimated count of over 200 officers & jawans were cremated in a collective ceremony in village of Asafwala around 7 kms from Fazilka

This included the body of Maj Narain Singh of 4 Jat Regiment who lost his life in the hands of Major Shabbir Sharif in a daring counter attack
The body of the gallant officer was returned with due respect and military honour by Pakistan
Maj Narain Singh was awarded Vir Chakra

Col (R) Vijay Singh then adjutant of 4 JAT had received the body of Major Narain Singh on 18 Dec 1971
Anil Paba tells us, "He recounted proudly that Pakistani side treated Maj Singh with respect
They picked up the unconscious Major and were taking him for treatment when he died

Observation Tower at Sulemanki has stories to tell
Somewhere in the distance is Sabauna DCB and Beriwala Bridge that witnessed the heroics of Maj Shabbir Sharif
Not very far from Sabauna would be Village Noor Muhammad where Naib Subedar Arif of 6 FF laid down his life fighting

Some 7 Kms inside Indian border people of Asafwala maintain 'Shaheedon ki Samadhi'
A war memorial to commemorate the sacrifices made by the gallant 226 soldiers fondly recalled as “Saviours of Fazilka"
This monument is also a shrine to mortal remains of 82 out of 226 soldiers

My readers interested in the full story might find this article at MANI JUNCTION of interest ... https://www.meemainseen.com/2015/09/sulemanki/

Last year when this thread was first posted my friend from India @GurkieMaan had promised to do a few pictures from the other side of the border
These pictures are included in this thread with due credit and a feeling of gratitude
Thank you Sir!