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Abhinandan Varthaman

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Wing Commander

Abhinandan Varthaman
Born (1983-06-21) 21 June 1983 (age 41)
Allegiance India
Service/branchIndian Air Force
Years of service2004 to present
Rank Wing Commander
Service number27981
Battles/wars2019 India–Pakistan standoff
Spouse(s)Tanvi Marwaha[1]
Children2[2]
An IAF MiG-21 Bison

Abhinandan Varthaman (born 21 June 1983) is an Indian fighter pilot and officer in the Indian Air Force who pilots a MiG-21 Bison fighter aircraft.[3][4] He received widespread media recognition when Indian authorities claimed that he took down a Pakistani F-16[5][6] before being shot down in an aerial dogfight, captured and held for three days in Pakistan during the 2019 India-Pakistan standoff.

Early life and career

He was born on 21 June 1983 in Tamil Nadu, India.[7] His family hails from Thirupanamoor, a village near Kanchipuram.[8] Abhinandan's father, Mr. Simhakutty Varthaman retired as an Air Marshal in the Indian Air Force while his mother is a doctor by profession.[7][9] Abhinandan is married to retired IAF Squadron leader, Tanvi Marwah, with two children and live near Tambaram in Chennai.[10]

Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman is a graduate of the National Defence Academy and joined the Indian Air Force as a fighter pilot in 2004. He trained at the IAF centres in Bathinda and Halwara and was previously a trained Su-30 MKI fighter pilot before being assigned to the MiG-21 Bison squadron.[10]

Duty and time spent in Pakistan

On 27 February 2019, Varthaman was flying a MiG-21 when he crossed into Pakistan territory. He was shot down by the Pakistani Air Force near the village of Horran.[11]. Varthaman ejected, deployed his parachute and descended safely to the ground. It is claimed by local villagers that Varthaman could be identified as an Indian pilot by the Indian flag on his parachute.[12] Upon landing, Varthaman asked the villagers if he was in India, to which the villagers replied "yes" to allow time for Pakistani soldiers to capture him alive.[13] In response to Varthaman shouting patriotic Indian slogans, villagers shouted back "long live Pakistani!", after which Varthaman began to fire warning shots and run away. At this point, Varthaman was attacked by some villagers. Varthaman attempted to swallow sensitive documents, some of which were taken by the villagers and handed over to the Pakistan Army.[14] When Pakistani soldiers arrived, they found Varthaman being attacked by a group of villagers, with some villagers trying to protect him.[15]

A statement released by the IAF said that prior to his MiG's crashing, a PAF Lockheed Martin F-16 crashed in Pakistan.[16][17]

Videos and images released by Pakistani authorities[18][19][20] showed him being beaten and dragged by a mob with his face covered in blood. Another set of videos showed him being interrogated while tied and blindfolded, receiving first aid and then being further interrogated over tea.[14][21] These videos and images of Varthaman beaten, bloodied and then blindfolded and interrogated received mixed reception with some criticising them as a "vulgar display"[22] and others praising the intervention of the Pakistani soldiers. The release of these videos is suspected of being a violation of the Geneva Conventions and were deleted by Pakistani authorities after they went viral.[23][24] However experts differ whether the Geneva Convention applies in this case.[25] In the first few videos, Varthaman did not divulge any details other than his name, his rank and that he was a Hindu.[26] The following day, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs confirmed that an Indian pilot was missing in action after a MiG-21 Bison fighter plane was lost while engaging with Pakistani jets that violated the Indian airspace.[27][28][29][18]

Repatriation

Wagha border

On 28 February 2019, Pakistan's PM Imran Khan announced while addressing a joint sitting of the Parliament of Pakistan that the government had decided to release Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman the next day as a "gesture of peace".[30] A petition that was filed before the Islamabad High Court seeking an injunction to stop his release was however dismissed by the court the same day.[31] Varthaman crossed the India-Pakistan border at Wagah on 1 March 2019.[32][33][34]

Talking to BBC Urdu, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the Foreign Minister of Pakistan said that his government announced the release of the IAF Wing Commander out of a desire for peace and there was no compulsion or pressure on Pakistan; as was implied by the Indian media.[35]

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed the release of Abhinandan at a political rally in his home state, suggesting the nation was proud of him.[36]

Hours before his release, a fresh video was released to the Pakistani media which showed Varthaman praising the Pakistani army while criticising the Indian media. This video appeared to be heavily edited and was quickly deleted. Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman later claimed that the video was shot under duress.[37][38][39]

A medical check-up upon his return found that he had multiple bruises and a fractured rib but no 'significant injuries'.[40]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Abhinandan Varthaman carries a legacy of courage, grace, valour". India Today. 1 March 2019.
  2. ^ Jena, Smrutisnat (1 March 2019). "All You Need To Know About Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, Who Will Be Coming Home Today". ScoopWhoop.
  3. ^ Dawn.com (28 February 2019). "2 Indian aircraft violating Pakistani airspace shot down; 2 pilots arrested". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  4. ^ "Saved From Pakistani Mob, Downed Indian Pilot Becomes Face of Kashmir Crisis". The New York Times. 27 February 2019.
  5. ^ "IAF pilot Abhinandan shot down Pakistan F-16 before his MiG-21 Bison was hit". Moneycontrol.com. 1 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Abhinandan Varthaman's MiG21 locked in Pakistan's F16". The Economic Times. 28 February 2019.
  7. ^ a b "Pilot Abhinandan Profile, Family, All you need to know about IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman". www.timesnownews.com.
  8. ^ "Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman trained at IAF, Tambaram". Deccan Chronicle. 28 February 2019.
  9. ^ "Cheers, Claps For Pilot Abhinandan Varthaman's Parents On Flight To Delhi". NDTV. 1 March 2019.
  10. ^ a b "Profile of a true HERO – All you need to know about Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman". Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  11. ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-47397418
  12. ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-47397418
  13. ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-47397418
  14. ^ a b Gettleman, Jeffrey; Raj, Suhasini (1 March 2019). "Pakistan Frees Indian Pilot Who Was Beaten by a Mob and Then Served Tea" – via NYTimes.com.
  15. ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-47397418
  16. ^ "Enough evidence to show Pak used F16s, 'disinformation' by Pak: Indian Air Force". News Laundry. 1 March 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  17. ^ Pubby, Manu (28 February 2019). "Abhinandan Varthaman's MiG21 locked in Pakistan's F16". Economic Times. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  18. ^ a b "Indian pilot Mr. abhinandan varthaman all videos" – via www.youtube.com.
  19. ^ "Never believe Pakistan!! Reality behind treatment of Wing commander Abhinandan!!😢🇮🇳🇮🇳🇮🇳" – via www.youtube.com.
  20. ^ Pakistan, Radio (27 February 2019). "The arrested Indian pilot #PakistanArmyZindabad #Budgam #PakistanAirForceOurPride #PakistanStrikesBack #PakistanZindabaad pic.twitter.com/UIPHFBv2Sk".
  21. ^ "Indian Pilot Abhi Nandan Is Getting First Aid From Pakistan Army". 28 February 2019 – via YouTube. {{cite web}}: Text "Manastars" ignored (help)
  22. ^ "India objects to vulgar display of injured IAF pilot, tells Pak to return him safely". The News Minute. 26 February 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  23. ^ Casiano, Louis (27 February 2019). "Pakistan may have violated Geneva Conventions after posting video of captured pilot". Fox News.
  24. ^ "Abhinandan raised slogans, tried to destroy documents just before being captured in Pak (BBC Hindi)". 28 February 2019 – via YouTube.
  25. ^ "Geneva Convention: Experts differ over immunity to Indian pilot". The News International. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  26. ^ "Wing Commander Abhinandan shouted slogans hailing India just before capture: Report". The News Minute. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  27. ^ "India-Pak Tensions LIVE: IAF Wing Commander Missing After MiG-21 Crash, Pakistan Claims He is in Their Custody, Says Govt". News18. 27 February 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  28. ^ Khan, M. Ilyas (1 March 2019). "Fighter pilot 'opened fire' before capture" – via www.bbc.com.
  29. ^ Feb 27, Thomson Reuters · Posted:; February 27, 2019 6:39 PM ET. "Saved from a Pakistani mob, a downed Indian pilot becomes the face of the Kashmir crisis". CBC. {{cite news}}: |first1= has generic name (help); Text "CBC News" ignored (help); Text "Last Updated:" ignored (help)CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  30. ^ "PM announces release of Indian pilot Abhinandan 'peace gesture'". Ary News. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  31. ^ "IHC dismisses petition challenging release of Indian pilot". The Express Tribune. 1 March 2019. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  32. ^ Dawn.com (1 March 2019). "Captured IAF pilot handed over to officials in Delhi". DAWN.COM. Retrieved 1 March 2019.
  33. ^ "Abhinandan: Captured Indian pilot handed back by Pakistan". BBC News.
  34. ^ Gettleman, Jeffrey; Raj, Suhasini (1 March 2019). "Pakistan Frees Indian Pilot Who Was Beaten by a Mob and Then Served Tea". The New York Times.
  35. ^ Dawn.com (2 March 2019). "No compulsion or pressure to release Abhinandan, did it for peace: Qureshi". DAWN. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  36. ^ "PM Modi welcomes IAF pilot Abhinandan, says 'nation proud of your exemplary courage' - Times of India ►". The Times of India.
  37. ^ "Abhinandan's video was recorded in captivity under duress: IAF - Times of India". The Times of India.
  38. ^ "Pakistan's propaganda video of Indian pilot Abhinandan had at least 16 cuts".
  39. ^ "Abhinandan Varthaman Says He Was Mentally Harassed In Pakistan: Report". NDTV.com. Retrieved 2 March 2019.
  40. ^ Gurung, Shaurya Karanbir (2 March 2019). "Abhinandan is back but with a rib fracture and some bruises" – via The Economic Times.
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