DEFENCE
Hajipir Pass: A mountain capture, and the politics of giving it back (1965)
A daring mountain assault that delivered a clear tactical victory, Hajipir became a lasting reminder that in wars between states, what soldiers win on the battlefield can still be surrendered at the negotiating table when diplomacy, international pressure, and political priorities take over.
DEFENCE
Dograi: The night assault that stunned Pakistan in 1965
A lightning night assault by 3 Jat across the Ichhogil Canal briefly put Indian infantry inside Dograi, near Lahore, before punishing counter-attacks forced a withdrawal, leaving behind a hard lesson on how speed and surprise can win ground but not always keep it.
DEFENCE
Nathu La and Cho La, 1967: The three days that changed how India deterred China in Sikkim
A fierce, localised clash over a ridgeline fence became a turning point after 1962, testing India’s readiness and signalling that the mountain border would no longer be conceded by default.
WORLD
Kennedy Center trustees vote to rename performing arts venue Trump-Kennedy Center
The Kennedy Center’s board unanimously voted to rename the John F. Kennedy Center as the Trump-Kennedy Center, citing President Donald Trump’s role in restoring its finances, facilities and reputation.
DEFENCE
Brig John Dalvi and the forgotten story of Namka Chu, 1962
A commander’s-eye view of how terrain, logistics and misreading the threat shaped the first major clash of the India-China war.
INDIA
Forgotten fronts of 1947-48: How Skardu, Poonch and Tithwal held line when Kashmir hung in balance
Skardu’s eight-month siege, Poonch’s year-long resistance and the hard-won Kishanganga positions at Tithwal rarely headline the war’s story, but they consumed enemy strength, bought India time, and helped shape the ceasefire map.
DEFENCE
Vice Admiral SM Nanda and the missile-boat commanders of Operation Trident
How bold leadership, young commanders and a revolutionary naval doctrine reshaped India’s maritime war in 1971.
DEFENCE
Company and platoon leaders in the Pattan-Baramulla-Uri advance: How small-unit actions stopped the 1947 drive on Srinagar
As raiders pushed down Kashmir’s main western road in October 1947, the fight to secure Pattan, clear Baramulla and stabilise Uri became a test of junior leadership. Company and platoon commanders held bridges, cleared villages and bought time for Srinagar.
DEFENCE
The pilots of the Poonch and Srinagar airbridges: The Dakota crews who saved Kashmir in 1947-48
The unsung Dakota crews who flew into hostile valleys day after day kept Srinagar and Poonch alive, turning fragile airstrips into lifelines that helped decide the first Kashmir war.
DEFENCE
Infantry leaders at Tithwal on the Kishanganga front: The ridge-by-ridge fight that shaped north Kashmir in 1948
From the climb over Nastachun Pass to the bitter defence of riverline posts, the Tithwal sector tested India’s young infantry leadership in the first Kashmir war. Brigade, battalion and section commanders fought for heights whose names still echo along the LOC.
INDIA
The Baramulla defenders: Dogra troops, policemen and volunteers who bought India time in 1947
As tribal raiders closed in on Srinagar in October 1947, an improvised mix of Dogra troops, policemen and Baramulla townspeople fought, fell and delayed the advance, buying just the crucial hours India needed to airlift soldiers and save the Valley.
INDIA
The lion of Skardu: How Sher Jung Thapa withstood six-month siege with 6 J&K Infantry
For his courage at Skardu, he was awarded the Maha Vir Chakra (the country’s second-highest gallantry award) — a distinction for his “inspiring leadership and exceptional devotion to duty under trying circumstances.”
INDIA
The defender of Poonch: How Captain Pritam Singh turned a doomed hill town into a year-long fortress
In the winter of 1947, a young captain arrived in a remote garrison expected to fall within weeks. What followed was one of the longest and most improbable defences in the first Kashmir war — a siege held together by grit, airlifts, local militias and a commander who refused to surrender.
INDIA
The stand that saved Srinagar: Major Som Nath Sharma at Badgam in1947
Major Som Nath Sharma’s outnumbered company of 4 Kumaon held the line at Badgam on November 3, 1947, with his arm in plaster, buying the hours India needed to secure Srinagar airfield, fly in reinforcements and turn the war’s tide.
INDIA
Construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya: How the trust, design and groundwork led to the 2024 inauguration
A detailed look at how a Supreme Court judgment set in motion one of modern India’s most significant religious construction projects
INDIA
Supreme Court’s 2019 Ayodhya verdict: How bench interpreted evidence, history and law to award disputed site
A detailed look at how the Constitution Bench read history, archaeology and civil law to settle a centuries-old dispute.
BUSINESS
Allahabad High Court’s 2010 Ayodhya verdict: How history, archaeology and law shaped the division of the disputed land
In 2010, a three-judge bench of the Allahabad High Court weighed worship traditions, historical records and ASI excavations to decide Ayodhya’s disputed land, crafting a three-way division that blended faith, archaeology and property law, before the Supreme Court’s final settlement.
INDIA
The Liberhan Commission & Babri Masjid case: How India’s longest-running inquiry traced responsibility for 1992 demolition and its political fallout
How India’s longest-running commission investigated the demolition and what its evidence trail revealed
INDIA
The 1990 Ayodhya karsevak firing: Confrontation that altered the temple movement
The October-November 1990 clashes in Ayodhya—marked by repeated karsevak attempts to storm the disputed structure, heavy police action, and Mulayam Singh Yadav’s uncompromising stand—became the moment that reshaped the movement and laid the political and emotional foundations for the events of December 1992.
INDIA
The 1990 Rath Yatra: How Advani’s Ayodhya march turned a political dispute into a mass street movement across India
Advani’s 1990 rath yatra, launched from Somnath to Ayodhya, did more than demand a temple. It stitched together scattered campaigns into a nationwide street mobilisation, triggered clashes and arrests, toppled a government, and pushed the Ayodhya dispute to the very centre of Indian politics.
INDIA
Rise of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement 1980s: How temple mobilisation and yatras turned Ayodhya into a national political campaign
How religious mobilisation, organisational campaigns and mass political participation during the 1980s transformed the Ram Janmabhoomi dispute from a regional legal battle into a nationwide movement that reshaped Indian politics and elevated the BJP as a major national force.
INDIA
Opening of the Babri Masjid site for Hindu worship (1986): How the court-ordered unlocking transformed the Ayodhya dispute
A factual account of the 1986 district court order that unlocked the gates of the disputed Babri Masjid–Ram Janmabhoomi site for Hindu worshippers after more than three decades, and how this administrative and legal decision altered the trajectory of the Ayodhya dispute by intensifying political, religious and communal mobilisation across India.
INDIA
Opening of Babri Masjid site for Hindu worship in 1986: How court-ordered unlocking transformed Ayodhya dispute
A factual account of the 1986 district court order that unlocked the gates of the disputed Babri Masjid–Ram Janmabhoomi site for Hindu worshippers after more than three decades, and how this administrative and legal decision altered the trajectory of the Ayodhya dispute by intensifying political, religious and communal mobilisation across India.
INDIA
Siege and fall of Skardu in 1947-48: The lonely garrison that held out for months and paid the ultimate price
How a cut-off outpost in Baltistan endured isolation, starvation and relentless assault before finally falling in one of the most tragic episodes of the Kashmir war. For months, Skardu’s tiny garrison held on with dwindling ammunition and no hope of relief, turning a remote fort into a symbol of endurance and sacrifice that still haunts the conflict’s memory.
