Rajendra Singh Bhati, SM

Biography

Naik Rajendra Singh Bhati was born on 24 December 1992 and hailed from Mohangarh in the Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan. He was the son of an army veteran, the late Havildar Sawal Singh Bhati, and Smt Nain Kanwar Rathore. Coming from a military family, he was drawn to the army uniform from his younger days. After completing his school education, he joined the army on 1 January 2013 at the age of 21 and was recruited into the 15 Rajput Battalion of the Rajput Regiment, an infantry regiment renowned for its valour and battle honours. After serving with his parent unit for some years, he was later deputed to 23 Rashtriya Rifles, deployed in the Kashmir valley for counter-insurgency operations. In September 2019, his unit was operating in the Ramban district of Jammu & Kashmir, an area that remained a hotbed of militant activity requiring constant vigilance. Acting on information about the presence of terrorists in the general area of Batote, the unit launched an operation with its Quick Reaction Team, of which Naik Rajendra Singh was a part. The QRT made contact with the militants, but after a gun battle the terrorists managed to escape to Kundrala, some nine kilometres from Batote, where they took a house owner hostage. A joint operation with elements of the J&K Police, Army, CISF and CRPF was then launched. When the security forces tightened the cordon, the cornered militants opened indiscriminate fire in a desperate bid to break out. Naik Rajendra Singh and his team engaged and eliminated the terrorists, but during the exchange of fire he was seriously wounded and later succumbed to his injuries at the age of 27. For his exceptional courage, devotion to duty and supreme sacrifice, he was awarded the Sena Medal posthumously.