To hear Shrestha’s story firsthand, the writer caught up with him on January 13, 2010 in Pokhara while he attended several felicitation programs in town.[break]
The following is a narrative of the incident as told to Diwakar Chettri.
My ancestral home is in Parbat, but I’ve been living in Baidam, Pokhara, for many years now. For the last 17 years, I’ve been serving in the Indian Army, following the footsteps of my father. Currently, I hold the position of Nayak and am based with the 7/8 Gurkha Regiment of the Indian Army.
On the day of the incident, I was coming back to Nepal for my holidays. On September 2, 2010, I boarded the Maurya Express in Ranchi at six in the evening for Gorakhpur. I’ve been traveling up and down that railway route for years, and though I had heard about incidents of robberies and thefts, I had no inkling of what was in store for me that fateful day.
The robbery took place at night in a forested area before arriving at the Chitranjan train station in West Bengal. Some 40 bandits, armed with swords and knives, stopped the train on its tracks and hopped onboard. Immediately, they started terrorizing and looting the passengers and proceeded from bogey to bogey. I was fast asleep at the time and wasn’t aware of the robbery taking place. I knew about it only when about seven robbers barged into the compartment I was in. It was around 11 pm. Later, I realized that this was their lead group. Till then, I didn’t know the robbers totaled some 40. I thought those who had entered my compartment were the only ones.
Like any normal person, I was concerned about my safety and that of the other passengers. I had no heroics on my mind at the time though I was quite agitated. The robbers were armed with swords and appeared to be ruthless. In such a situation, one obviously feels helpless. And since I had been deeply asleep until moments ago, I was quite disoriented. But being a soldier, it was very hard for me to just stand and watch.
Initially, I didn’t do anything. I reacted only when some of them came to snatch my belongings. I vehemently refused, and then one of them slapped me. That was when I charged at them. I punched down three while the others exited the compartment. But they came back with other dacoits. That was when I saw there were some 40 of them.
I knew it would be impossible for one individual to fight back so many armed robbers. I was even doubtful whether I had done the right thing by attacking them. They immediately ganged up on me. But one of them whom I had punched down earlier, and who hadn’t still gotten up, told his pals to leave me alone. He explained to them that I was a “fauji” (soldier) and that it wouldn’t matter much leaving out one individual as they had the entire train to rob. This was sheer luck. If that guy hadn’t told his friends to leave me alone, I could’ve been seriously wounded or worse. So I was extremely lucky. They left me alone and proceeded to rob the other passengers who were totally scared and didn’t put up any resistance.
I had tactfully decided not to react. But what happened next was too much for me. The robbers came upon a young Indian girl who was doing her Masters. They told her to take her clothes off. She told them, “I’ve given you my money and belongings. What more do you want?”
They tried to tear her clothes off forcefully, right in front of her family members. She started yelling, “Brother, brother!” At first, I didn’t realize she was calling out to me. It took me sometime to decide whether I should launch another attack. What would I have done had it been my sister, daughter, or any one of my female relatives? Of course, I would retaliate and not be a mute bystander. Rather than bravery, I would say it was compassion that led me to attack the robbers again.
I pulled out a khukuri from my bag and took one of the robbers hostage. I told them that I was a soldier and had a pistol too. It was a very tense moment as the robbers were still harassing the girl. That’s when all hell broke loose. I charged with my khukuri and cut them down. Three died right in front of me, some others got seriously injured, and the rest ran away.
All the while, the train stood on its tracks. After the robbers ran off, I started making lots of noise and banged the compartment walls. My plan was to secure the compartment I was in. I was confident I could do it even if they came back.
There was a lot of confusion. Amidst this, two robbers came back pretending to be passengers and attacked me with a sword and injured my wrist. But I managed to ward them off once again.
All this happened within less than half an hour. The train started moving once again and soon we reached Chitranjan Station. The young girl whom I rescued did everything to make me comfortable, as I was injured pretty badly because the sword had cut through the wrist vein and even the bone. I still have difficulty moving my wrist. Surprisingly, I don’t recall the name of the girl; so you’ll have to check with the Indian media for that.
The girl said, “Brother, as you risked your life and saved me, I’ll ensure that you get proper treatment, police protection, and that the story is told to the media.” She kept her word. She called up the police, the media and arranged for my treatment at the station. Other passengers and train authorities also assisted her.
Upon hearing what had happened, my commander immediately saw to it that I was evacuated and that I received proper treatment. My name was also referred to for a prestigious national award for bravery.
I came back to Nepal after recuperating in the army hospital for two months. I didn’t meet any Nepali journalist as I didn’t go about relating the incident. When a local mothers’ group, Miteri Ama Samuha, decided to honor me at one of their gatherings in Pokhara, my story caught the attention of the journalists here.
Well, I plan to continue serving with the Indian Army to the end of my term, though I had considered requesting for voluntary retirement before the incident.