Victoria Cross to Gurkhas: Who cares?
Of the total 1,356 Victoria Crosses, the highest military decoration given by the British monarch, awarded worldwide since its inception in 1856, 13 were given to the Gurkhas. Unfortunately, none of these bravery medals are in Nepal now.
Neither the government offices have any record where these medal are nor any private organisations and individuals fighting for rights of the Gurkha soldiers are aware of them. The British government also has not given adequate information regarding the VCs conferred to Gurkhas and a few that remained with the winners were later taken back to decorate the museums in Westminster and Winchester, United Kingdom.
Only two of the VC winning Gurkhas we have surviving today: Rifleman Tul Bahadur Pun and Lance Corporal Ram Bahadur Limbu. According to London Gazette dated November 1944, Pun was conferred this prestigious military award on June 23, 1944 for his bravery in Burma during the war against Japanese soldiers. Limbu was conferred the VC on November 21, 1965 for his service during the Indonesian confrontation in Borneo, which includes Brunei, Indonesia and Malaysia. He later achieved the rank of honorary captain.
The Gurkha Army Ex-Servicemen’s Organisation (GAESO) says it does not have records when these medals were taken back to London. “We have little information that chief of the Paklihawa recruitment center has asked the Gurkha VCs to return their medal for safe keeping in London,” GAESO general secretary Mahendra Rai told Nepalnews.
Arjun Kumar, 30, the elder son of Tul Bahadur Pun, also does not remember any British officials approaching his father for return of the medal. “The medal should have taken just after the World War II as father told us it has been taken by the British officials,” he said.
Ram Bahadur Limbu has lost his VC but Pun’s has been on display at Gurkha museum in Winchester along with others medals he won such as 1939-1945 Star, Burma Star, War Medal 1939-1945, India Service Medal, General Service Medal (1918), Coronation Medal 1953, Jubilee Medal 1977 and Golden Jubilee Medal 2002 among others.
GAESO advocates for re-conferring the coveted medal to Pun, who is currently in London fighting for equal pension to all retired Gurkha soldiers. “We are trying that Prince Charles re-confers the same medal to Pun. To bring it back to Nepal or not depend on his willingness,” Rai said.
According to Pun, he was ‘ordered’ to hand over his VC for just 40,000 Indian rupees – about 500 pounds today – in 1974 by the British Army which said it was taking it for safe-keeping. The British Ministry of Defence claimed that Pun’s VC displayed in the Gurkha Museum in Winchester, was purchased from him in 1974 for market value.
He had received a letter in March 1974 from the 6th Gurkha Rifles saying an officer would visit him to take back the medal. Pun quoted the official approaching him to take back the medal as saying, “He informed me the medal was too valuable to be in my possession and the army would be withholding it for safekeeping. Some time later I received IRs 40,000 in return. My Victoria Cross was taken to the Regimental Headquarters in Hong Kong. It was kept there for a number of years.”
Agansing Rai’s family sold the VC in an auction on July 22, 2004, four years after Rai died, to open a Trust in his name ‘Trust for Education and Healthcare’. It was auctioned by Spink of London for the sum of £115,000.
The London gazettes decoratively praised the valour of the Gurkhas who were conferred the VCs with details about the war the Gurkha heroes fought. For instance, the London gazette dated November 7, 1944 inscribes following while conferring the VC to Pun:
“The KING has been graciously pleased to approve the award of the VICTORIA CROSS to:- No. 10119 Rifleman Tulbahadur (sic) Pun, 6th Gurkha Rifles, Indian Army. In Burma on June 23rd, 1944, a Battalion of the 6th Gurkha Rifles was ordered to attack the Railway Bridge at Mogaung. Immediately the attack developed the enemy opened concentrated and sustained cross fire at close range from a position known as the Red House and from a strong bunker position two hundred yards to the left of it. So intense was this cross fire that both the leading platoons of ‘B’ Company, one of which was Rifleman Tulbahadur (sic) Pun’s, were pinned to the ground and the whole of his Section was wiped out with the exception of himself, the Section commander and one other man. The Section commander immediately led the remaining two men in a charge on the Red House but was at once badly wounded. Rifleman Tulbahadur (sic) Pun and his remaining companion continued the charge, but the latter too was immediately wounded. Rifleman Tulbahadur (sic) Pun then seized the Bren Gun, and firing from the hip as he went, continued the charge on this heavily bunkered position alone, in the face of the most shattering concentration of automatic fire, directed straight at him. With the dawn coming up behind him, he presented a perfect target to the Japanese. He had to move for thirty yards over open ground, ankle deep in mud, through shell holes and over fallen trees. Despite these overwhelming odds, he reached the Red House and closed with the Japanese occupants. He killed three and put five more to flight and captured two light machine guns and much ammunition. He then gave accurate supporting fire from the bunker to the remainder of his platoon which enabled them to reach their objective. His outstanding courage and superb gallantry in the face of odds which meant almost certain death were most inspiring to all ranks and beyond praise.”
There hasn’t been any initiative to bring back these bravery medals. GAESO officials say it is up to Pun, on condition that he was re-conferred, whether he would want to bring back the medal.
While the fight for equal pension to retired Gurkhas goes on, an important aspect of the VC winners’ benefits remains under shadow. According to legal provisions, today holders of the Victoria Cross or George Cross are entitled to an annuity, the amount of which is determined by the awarding government. Since 2002, the annuity paid by the British government is 1,495 pounds per year. The Nepali VC winners, however, get 132 pounds a year.
Let’s hope the concerned authorities take initiative at least to find out where these VCs conferred to Gurkha veterans are lying now, if they are not quite able to bring these assets back to Nepal.
Published in Nepalnews.com