The Ernakulam-New Delhi Nizamuddin Express chugged slowly into the Panvel station.
A tall man holds his right arm and sits quietly by the window. I hop in. None of the other commuters in the compartment had an inkling that the man sitting in their midst was a hero from the fateful night of 26/11. The motorman blows the whistle and the train proceeds.
English somehow wasn’t the language for conversation. After a little coaxing in Malayalam, PV Manesh, 33, opens up, and recollects the events of that unforgettable night: “At 9.30 on November 26, the terrorists began their assault. At 2 am on November 27, NSG commandos stationed in Delhi got a distress call. We were rushed to the airport and soon I was making my first-ever visit to Mumbai. At 8 am, a helicopter landed us on the terrace of Trident Hotel.
We began a room-by-room search, descending from the top floor. We would knock on a door, if there was no response, we would blast it open. In some rooms, we found terrified foreigners huddled in a corner. At first, they thought we were terrorists and pleaded, “Don’t kill us!” When we informed them that we were commandos, some of the women wept in relief. We went floor by floor with extreme caution.
When we reached the 14th floor, it felt a bit eerie. We instinctively felt that something was wrong here. It was too quiet. The rooms we knocked at were empty. Then came room no. 203. We knocked, no response. As we blasted the door open, a quick round of gun fire greeted us.
The hotel security guard was down and dead. NSG Commando AK Singh and I rushed in with a counter-attack. From the corner of my eye, I saw movement in the bathroom and the barrel of an AK47. I fired at him till he fell lifeless.
The second terrorist looked frightened. Singh’s sharp shooting had injured his trigger finger. When I saw him lob a grenade at us, I reacted instantly, fired and killed him. Next we dived down, and the grenade exploded. I was struck by shrapnel on the head.
Though I was wearing a helmet, the impact of the explosion was as such that my American helmet tore apart and the shrapnel got wedged into my head. I lost consciousness.
Four days later, when I awoke at the Bombay Hospital, my arm and leg had gone numb. I was paralysed. The doctor said I might take 6 months to recover.”
Recognising his bravery, the government awarded him and Singh the Shaurya Chakra for their role in defeating the terrorists at Trident.
Manesh is now on his way to Delhi for further treatment. “I want to visiting Mumbai again,” he says. “But next time I won’t come with a gun but with my wife and one-year-old son.” Manesh who fought the Kargil war suffered hip injures then.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}