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Auction: 24003 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 75

'Suddenly, about 1630 hours on the afternoon of October 28th the whole town rose in arms against us, a fanatical mob over 140,000 strong and 20,000 of them Japanese trained, whipped up to an uncontrollable frenzy and armed to the teeth against 4,000 troops, many of them in isolated company and platoon posts. The bestial scenes that followed in the name of freedom rivalled the vilest moments of the French Revolution.'

The Fighting Cock, Lieutenant-Colonel A. J. F. Doulton, refers

The General Service Medal awarded to Lance Naik S. Pakar, 4th Battalion, 5th Mahratta Light Infantry who was killed in action on 28 October 1945, the opening day of the Battle of Surabaya

General Service 1918-62, 1 clasp, S.E. Asia 1945-46 (14901. L/Nk. Sakharam Pakar. 4 Bn., Mahratta L.I.), claw somewhat loose, light contact wear overall, very fine

Sakharam Pakar was the son of Bala and Rajebai Pakar of Kole, Kolaba, India and the husband of Laxmibai Pakar, also of Kole. He likely had Second World War Service given his rank and was stationed in Singapore during the transition from the Japanese Government back to the colonial authorities. Pakar was present when tensions in the city boiled over and nationalist militias killed Brigadier Mallaby as he drove to inspect a British post.

The fighting escalated quickly as the city rose en-mass and British troops soon found themselves heavily outnumbered. The Fighting Cock again describes the horrifying scenes of the first day and most notably the role of the 5th Mahrattas, stating:

'At the time of the rising there were on the road twenty 3-ton lorries of 123 Ind.Coy. R.I.A.S.C. full of women and children who were being taken to Darmo; the escort found from "B" Company 4 Mahratta, numbered twenty-two and was commanded by a Lance Havildar. About 1830 hours the leading vehicle was halted by a roadblock and the crowd behind the barrier opened fire, killing instantly the officer in charge of the convoy and some of the internees. Almost simultaneously the trap closed at the back, though one driver managed to reverse his vehicle and drove through the hail of bullets to safety. Inside the trap about sixty Indian soldiers remained to defend four hundred women and children against a mob lusting for slaughter; they had for the defence two Bren guns, one at the front and one at the rear, their rifles and their courage.

Inspired by the R.I.A.S.C. subedar at the rear and by the Lance Havildar, the defenders fought for two and half hours to save the women and children, who had been taken from the lorries and put into the houses fringing the road. Up and down the convoy went the Havildar, cheering his men and distributing ammunition. The Brens continued to speak, the piles of dead at the barricades mounted, but more and more Indonesians came forward trampling on the fallen. By now night had come and the mob surged around the barriers, uttering blood curdling screams as they saw their prey within their grasp. Where ammunition had run out, the knives, swords and daggers did their devilish work, and the cries of the maimed and mutilated mingled with the attackers' yells of triumph while the flames from burning lorries cast a livid light over this ghastly battle.

Throughout the city mob rule prevailed. Some officers who were on lone missions when the storm broke were never heard of again ... 49th Indian Brigade were fighting for their lives with odds weighed heavily against them ... It was a situation to try the nerves of the most hardened, but many of these men were veterans of Shenam and Sangshak, of Gibraltar and Rajput Hill, and they knew how to fight. Fight they did with magnificent gallantry - in some cases until their ammunition was gone, when the frenzied mob was free to swarm in for the killing.

At length, following the bloody fighting of the 28th-29th, a truce of sorts was established; yet the ensuing negotiations for a proper peace settlement were protracted and exhausting, for the Indonesians were "truculent, evasive, dilatory and unco-operative' from the outset".'

It is not known for sure where Pakar fell however it is quite likely he was part of the escort for the convoy mentioned in the passage. An article in the Journal of Imperial and Commonwealth History by John Springhill entitled "Disaster in Surabaya": the death of Brigadier Mallaby during the occupation of Java, 1945-46 gives the casualties for the Brigade over the period of 28-31 October at 16 Officers and 217 Other Ranks killed. Pakar is commemorating upon the Singapore Memorial; sold together with a Commonwealth War Graves certificate and transcribed extract from The Fighting Cock.

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Estimate
£200 to £300

Starting price
£160