Brigadier Sikandar Ahmad-1 FF Regiment It is not necessary that we have to discuss Napoleons and Guderians here on military history forums. We can discuss potential Napoleon also. It was August or September 1984 when I met then Major Sikandar Ahmad , then serving in 1 FF. Sikandar was an exceptional man intellectually ! A rare find ! His sense of humour was also historic and most unorthodox ! When his brigade commander one Syed Tanvir Hussain Naqvi visited him in the combined military hospital Kharian camtonment Sikandar who had a foot in plaster (a basket ball injury) when asked by Naqvi " Oh you can walk " retorted , I can hop also ! Sikandar had been commissioned in 1 FF and got in trouble with Colonel Shahid Jan in 1971 , went on adverse to 20 FF and went on adverse again back to 1 FF in 1984 ! It turned out that Major Sikandar Ahmad belonged to an extremely educated and outstanding family and younger brother of one Akbar.S.Ahmad a CSP who was then commissioner of Sibi . Sikandar as all brilliant and outspken men was in clash with authority , having inspired jealousy of smaller men who had higher ranks ! But as they say it the habit of stray village dogs to bark at eminent men ! Although I was a history enthusiast Sikandar played a role in polishing it by his analysis of history from a high vantage point , seeing the larger picture and guiding me how to do it ! He taught me how to write redress of grievances against your military superiors as per instructions given in Army regulations 193 and 194 originally conceived by the British and one of their greatest contributions to the military law. With Sikandars guidance I became an expert in writing redress of grievances and in military law and helped many juniour officers in fighting and sometimes playing hell with careers of their intellectually dishonest commanding officers ! It is sad that while the Indian Army gave their officers basic rights in pakistan the army has laws of stone age ! We met again in Multan in 1985-86. In 1987 or 1988 Sikandar was miraculously promoted to be a colonel. Miraculously I say because men of his very high calibre have no place in armies which in reality are citadels of mediocrity ! Sikandar was a chronic bachelor but suddenly he got married in 1988 or so ! He was on his honey moon and stayed at my fathers annexe in cavalry ground Lahore. Major General Hameed Gul who initially was not in favour of Sikandar realised that Sikandar was an exceptionally talented man and I believe Sikandar did extremely well in the ISI under Gul. I managed to visit Sikandar many times in the desert in tamewali when he was commanding his parent 1 FF regiment.We sat next to fire lit in the open and chatted. This was 1988 or so . I last talked with him in 1993 or so when I was commanding an independent squadron at Okara and he commanding an infantry brigade at Pano Aqil.He had been selected for the war course but the lesser souls with lesser intellects again conspired against him ! Sikandar did not have that shameless obsequeousness which you find in most officers. I last met him in 2000 when he had retired .I wanted to present him my book but a major general expressed immense interest in it and i gave it to him ! I thought that I would give Sikandar another copy ! But then we lost contact ! I dont know where he is now ! In retrospect I can say that more harm on the pakistani state and army has been inflicted by its third rate senior officials than any enemy could do ! It was with this background in mind that I thus wrote in my article published in the command and staff college Quettas Citadel Journal; " many military systems that this world saw were a conspiracy against originality and boldness" !
Posted on: Wed, 02 Oct 2013 03:41:39 +0000
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