Major Tufail Muhammad

Major Tufail Muhammad was born in 1914 and was commissioned in the 16th Punjab Regiment in 1943. Upon creation of Pakistan, he joined Pakistan Army. During 1958, with border skirmishes with India in the erstwhile East Pakistan, Major Tufail Muhammad was commanding a company of the East Pakistan Rifles near the town of Lakshmipur. The company encircled an illegal Indian post, which was erected by the Indians in violation of the internationally recognized boundary between the two countries. During the enemy action, Major Tufail was mortally wounded, but did not stop fighting even at close quarters. In the hand-to-hand encounter that followed, Major Tufail continued to lead his troops till the Indians were driven out, leaving four dead and three prisoners. However, Major Tufail himself succumbed to his wounds and embraced shahadat on the 7th August 1958. He was awarded with the second Nishan-e-Haider for his gallantry.