Muhammad Hussain (soldier)

Sowar Muhammad Hussain Janjua NH
Native name	سوار محمد حسین جنجوعہ
Born	18 January 1949 (1949-01-18) Dhok Pir Bakhsh, Rawalpindi District, West Punjab, Dominion of Pakistan
Died	10 December 1971(1971-12-10) (aged 22) Harar Khurd, Shakargarh, Narowal District, Punjab, Pakistan
Buried	Rawalpindi District, Punjab, Pakistan
Allegiance	Pakistan
Service / branch	Pakistan Army
Years of service	1966–1971
Rank	Sowar
Service number	1028148
Unit	20 Lancers
Battles / wars	Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 †
Awards	Nishan-e-Haider
Memorials	Dhok Pir Bakhsh village renamed to Dhok Muhammad Husain Janjua Sawar Muhamad Hussain Shaheed (N.H) Boys Hostel
Spouse(s)	Arzan Bibi ​ (m. 1967)​
Children	2, including Munawar Hussain
Website	https://pakistanarmy.gov.pk/Sowar-Mohammad-Hussain.php

Sowar Muhammad Hussain Janjua NH, (Punjabi, Urdu: سوار محمد حسین جنجوعہ; 18 January 1949 – 10 December 1971) was a Pakistani soldier and the 8th recipient of Pakistan's highest military award, the Nishan-e-Haider, and the only soldier of the Pakistan Armoured Corps to be given this award. He is known for destroying 16 tanks with a recoilless rifle in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.

Early life

Hussain was born in the village of Dhok Pir Bakhsh into a Punjabi Janjua Rajput family on 18 January 1949 to Roz Ali, a farmer.

Personal life

Hussain was married to Arzan Bibi and had two children. At the time of his death, his daughter was a little over two years old and his son Munawar Hussain, was three months old. Sowar Hussain did not have a chance to see his son due to not getting leave and Hussain died before his son's birth.

Military career

He enlisted into the Pakistan Armoured Corps as a Driver on 3 September 1966 at the age of 17 and later joined the 20th Lancers on 23 May 1967.

Although he was a Driver in the Armoured Corps, he would take part in every battle his unit got engaged in during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. On 5 December 1971, in the Zafarwal-Shakargarh area, he crawled from trench to trench under heavy enemy fire to deliver ammunition.

Death

On 10 December 1971, he took part in a dangerous mission and went out for reconnaissance and to fight enemy patrols. During reconnaissance, near the village Harar Khurd he spotted enemy tanks and on his own initiative, directed a recoil-less rifle crew towards the enemy and destroyed 16 enemy tanks. He was hit in the chest by a burst of machine-gun fire and killed while directing fire from recoilless rifles. After his death, his father proudly said "My son received bullets on his chest like a lion"

Naib Risaldar Ali Nawab and Lance daffadar Abdur Rehman picked up his body from the battlefield.

Burial

The tomb of Hussain Janjua

Hussain was buried in a makeshift military graveyard in Shakargar but his body was later excavated and buried in his native village of Dhok Pir Bakhsh.

Memorials

After Sawar Hussain's death, his village Dhok Pir Bakhsh was renamed Dhok Muhammad Hussain to commemorate his sacrifice. It is also referred to as Dhok Nishan-e-Haider due to Hussain being a receiver of the award.

Sawar Muhamad Hussain Shaheed (N.H) Boys Hostel was established in October 1992 to give free education to male children of Shaheed, deceased, war wounded and retired/serving junior commissioned officers and soldiers of the Pakistan Armoured Corps who were appointed on merit. When the school was established, the number of students was 40 and rose to 82. Students from year six to intermediate are eligible for admission into the hostel. All expenses such as boarding, lodging, medical treatment, books, stationery, school and extra coaching fee, etc., are paid by the Armoured Corps Centre.

Awards and decorations

Nishan-e-Haider (NH)

External links

• Sowar Hussain Shaheed ispr.gov.pk Archived 9 August 2019 at the Wayback Machine