Pakistan’s first military ruler, self-promoted Field Marshal Ayub Khan, emboldened by a large package of US arms and under the delusion that the Indian Army was weak after the 1962 Sino-Indian war, launched Pakistan’s second war against India in 1965.

Thanks to American military aid, Pakistan’s army had 17–18 tank regiments with about 900 tanks, outnumbering India’s 14 tank regiments, which had just over 700 tanks — all of World War II vintage. India’s main artillery guns were old 25-pounders and 3.7-inch howitzers. Pakistan, meanwhile, had American-made M114 155mm and M110 203mm howitzers in addition to 25-pounders and 3.7-inch howitzers. Its air force was freshly equipped with US-supplied Sabre jets, while the Indian Air Force still relied largely on the older Gnats.

Pakistan began the war with border skirmishes in the Rann of Kutch in January 1965, which failed and ended in July. In August, it launched an operation in Jammu & Kashmir to incite an uprising and capture territory — that too failed. Then, from 28 August to 22 September 1965, fierce infantry actions and some of the largest tank battles since World War II were fought in the plains of Jammu and Punjab.

By the end of the war, Pakistan had lost 3,800 personnel killed, over 400 tanks destroyed or captured, more than 40 aircraft shot down, and suffered a sharp drop in morale. The Indian Army captured the vital 2,637-meter (8,652-foot) high Haji Pir Pass, reached the outskirts of Lahore, captured Phillora, and created “Patton Nagar,” a graveyard of nearly 100 destroyed Pakistan's famed Patton tanks at Khem Karan.

Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, who went to Tashkent in January 1966 for peace talks with
Ayub Khan under Soviet auspices, agreed to return Haji Pir to Pakistan. Tragically, Shastri died in Tashkent under circumstances that remain controversial; his death was officially attributed to a heart attack but was never properly investigated.

Pakistan’s leading English daily Dawn wrote on 6 September 2005:

“…the 1965 war also led to an embargo of US arms supplies to Pakistan. Islamabad's use of American arms against India was against the assurances given by President Dwight Eisenhower to Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru that in case Pakistan used US-supplied arms against India, necessary corrective action would follow. Though the Pentagon and the US bureaucracy were prepared to look the other way if Pakistan had won the war, they found it difficult to overlook the miserable performance of Pakistani armour at Khem Karan.”

In the same newspaper, Air Marshal (retd) Nur Khan, Chief of Pakistan Air Force during the war, who was kept in the dark about Operation Gibraltar, was quoted as saying:

“It was a wrong war. And they misled the nation with a big lie that India provoked the war and that we were the victims of Indian aggression.”

The Legendary Role of 4 Horse (Hodson’s Horse)

It is worth recounting the exploits of the Indian Army’s famous tank regiment, 4 Horse — also known as Hodson’s Horse — in the 1965 war for several reasons:

• Ayub Khan’s father, Risaldar Major Mir Dad Khan, served in this regiment.

• Equipped with World War II-vintage Centurion tanks, 4 Horse destroyed the highest number of enemy tanks in the 1965 war — 79, mostly newly acquired and superior US-made Pattons, and 17 recoilless guns.

• The regiment’s commanding officer’s tank personally destroyed four enemy tanks despite being hit four times. After his tank caught fire and he and his crew bailed out, they continued fighting dismounted with small arms and evaded capture.

• 4 Horse exemplified swift manoeuvre, turning the enemy’s flank, and destroying superior forces through surprise and tactical brilliance.

• Despite facing superior tanks, lack of maps, and limited equipment, they completed every assigned task beyond higher commanders’ expectations.

• The regiment displayed outstanding bravery, with many personnel killed, wounded, or permanently disabled.

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Battle of Phillora – A First-Person Account

An excerpt from the personal account of Lt Col (later Brig) M.M.S. Bakshi, Commanding Officer of 4 Horse during the war, captures the moment:

“By September 11, Hodson’s Horse had put a tight squeeze on Phillora. We were not only keeping the enemy’s Phillora defences fully engaged but also destroying everything falling back from the Gadgor defences. Meanwhile, 17 Horse had also fetched up from the direction of Libbe and made contact with Phillora from the south and southwest. Thus, our armour had virtually put a ring around Phillora and threatened its lifeline to Chawinda. Just after midday, we intercepted an enemy wireless message:

‘We are pulling out from Chobara, Gadgor and Phillora. One of our units has been overrun at Gadgor, we are pulling back to Fatehpur.’

The enemy had evidently been unnerved… By 1530 hours Phillora was taken by 17 Horse and 43 Lorried Infantry Brigade. Much booty was left behind by the enemy… A jeep belonging to GOC 6 Armoured Division, complete with his flag and star plates, was captured intact. Besides, a map lorry with a good stock of maps and other equipment was found littered all over. Thus, our problem of maps was solved for good.”

In this battle, 1 Armoured Brigade destroyed 51 enemy tanks, of which 4 Horse accounted for 27. Remarkably, other than Lt Col Bakshi’s tank, no other tanks of 4 Horse were destroyed, and none suffered serious damage.

The regiment earned 43 gallantry awards. Notable stories include:

• Lt Col Bakshi, Maj Bhupinder Singh, and others fought with cupolas open, refusing to abandon tanks even after multiple hits.

• Maj Bhupinder Singh was severely burned when his tank caught fire. He later succumbed to his injuries after Prime Minister Shastri personally visited him in hospital — an incident that deeply moved the PM.

• Pakistani tank crews often abandoned tanks after the first hit due to religious fears of burning to death — leaving many repairable tanks for India to capture.

• Lt (later Col) Ashok Sodhi survived a near-fatal head injury and recovered after over a month in a coma.

• Lt Charanjit Singh was killed during air strafing.

• Several officers and men, including Maj KS Dhillon and Maj Desraj Urs, continued fighting despite severe injuries, setting an example of courage and tenacity.

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Legacy

For its valour, 4 Horse was awarded the Battle Honour “Phillora.” Since 1966, 11 September has been commemorated as Phillora Day. Coincidentally, it is also Nathula Day, marking the 1967 battle at Nathula, Sikkim, where the same Brig M.M.S. Bakshi commanded the Nathula Brigade.

(The author is a strategic affairs analyst and former spokesperson, Defence Ministry and Indian Army. He can be contacted at wordsword02@gmail.com, on LinkedIn, and on X (Twitter) @ColAnilBhat8252 )