Major General Rafiuddin:
A Complete Soldier

Columnist S M Hali writes the obituary of one of our real heroes.

On the 17th of September 2002, the world of Islam was deprived of a great soldier. A silent crusader, who had served Pakistan and the Muslim world quietly and without the avarice of compliments or accolade departed from this world. May his soul rest in peace. (Ameen).
Major General Rafiuddin is considered as one of the most competent and talented officers of Pakistan Army. Born in 1938, he reported to Pakistan Military Academy (PMA) Kakul in 1956 and on successful completion of his training, was commissioned in the Infantry Branch and joined the 16th Baluch regiment. As a young Subaltern, he volunteered to undergo training for the Special Services Group (SSG), the elite commando force. The rigorous training of the SSGs took him to the deep forests of Sunderbans, the sizzling deserts of Thar or the barren mountains of Balochistan or saw him para jumping from the vast expanses of the sky above. He bore the rigours with enthusiasm and zeal. The SSG training came in handy when he was called to undertake special operations at the outbreak of the 1965 and 1971 Pak-India Wars. Infiltration behind enemy lines, interdicting its war potential and sabotaging its war capabilities make for thrilling and hair-raising accounts but in view of national security, cannot be discussed here.
Besides mastering the art of soldiering, Gen. Rafi also excelled with the pen. By the time he became a Lieutenant Colonel, he had also become an accomplished writer. His articles on strategy, tactics, battlefield operations, and the history of the sub-continent and military history started appearing in various journals and newspapers. Passing through different stages of command, staff and training, Gen Rafi continued to win accolades for his hard work and outstanding performance. He served as a Platoon Commander in PMA and as Directing Staff at the Command and Staff College. As a Lieutenant Colonel, he commanded two battalions; as a Brigadier, he had the unique distinction of commanding three different brigades, including his coveted SSG. At the Joint Services Headquarters, he served as Director Operations and Intelligence; while at the Inter Services Intelligence, he provided yeoman services as Director General External Intelligence and Special Operations. In February 1992, he retired in the rank of Major General. For his outstanding valour and exceptional services, the Government of Pakistan conferred upon him the awards of Sitara-e-Basalat and Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Military).
After retirement, a new chapter of his life started. Touched by the terrible condition of the Muslims, he volunteered to go to Bosnia on his own. There he helped organize the Muslims in a cohesive force to face the challenges of the enemy. On his return from there, he decided to write the history of his parent unit, the Baluch Regiment. Writing the history of the 180 year old Baluch Regiment was never going to be an easy task since it was virtually the history of the subcontinent. Having been raised in 1820, the Regiment had played an important role in suppressing the War for Independence in 1857, participated actively in both the World Wars, witnessed the Partition of India, and seen action in both the 1965 and 1971 Pakistan-India Wars. Collecting data especially for the period prior to the Partition of India, was extremely difficult but the retired British Officers who had served in the Baluch Regiment were of great assistance. The British India Office Library and The Library of US Congress provided invaluable information, maps, drawings and details of various campaigns. The result is two volumes, which are a rich and outstanding addition to the limited repository of Military History Books on the Sub-Continent. The military history of various battalions of the regiment has been covered in an excellent manner linking the unit’s role with the overall military situation. The narrative is most interesting since the author has included various incidents from unit histories involving details of battle actions in which gallantry awards were won or accounts dealing with military personalities. The author does not hesitate from giving his opinion on various historical aspects and this makes the narrative more appealing. The battle accounts are supported by excellent maps. The photographs and paintings are of excellent quality and make the book very fascinating to read. The author has taken pains to highlight the role of the Baluchis in various remote campaigns in East Africa in the late 1890s. Many in Pakistan were not aware of these campaigns. The accounts dealing with the Sepoy Rebellion of 1857 and the First World War are extremely well done. The analysis integrates the pure military history aspect with the Indo-Pak and particularly Indo- Muslim point of view. It is a difficult exercise since the Indian Army was a mercenary army and employed to fight against the freedom fighters! The writer has managed to highlight the performance of the Baluch Regiment and has also been sympathetic to the Freedom Fighters.
General Rafi has made a landmark effort in military history writing. His work has filled a serious void in Pakistani military history and the remarkable aspect is that General Rafiuddin did not accept any payment for this invaluable contribution.
For the last one year, General Rafiuddin was serving as the Vice President of Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI) and Chief Editor of the IPRI Journal. Through his hard work, initiative and innovative ideas, he contributed tremendously in enhancing the image, prestige and performance of IPRI.
General Rafiuddin was a very humane individual, who was very sensitive to the cause of the downtrodden and suffering Muslim Ummah. He highlighted their cause not only through his writing, but also undertook practical work for them, providing invaluable guidance and advice on organizing them militarily. During his tenure of service in the army and other institutions, anyone who worked with him or came in contact with him, became his ardent admirer. Even after retirement, any needy or deprived person approached him for help; he would make every endeavour to help him. He was quietly providing financial assistance to numerous individuals.
In 1999, General Rafiuddin developed Hepatitis-C. His liver started malfunctioning and he was in great pain, yet he continued work till the very end. His eldest son, Major Dr. Riffat Nadeem Ahmed, in the traditions of sacrifice established by his father, decided to donate more than half his liver to his father in a bid to keep him alive. This delicate surgical transplant was undertaken by a team of competent surgeons at the King Fahd National Guard Hospital at Riyadh on 14 September 2002. On 17th September, certain serious complications developed and despite their best attempts, the doctors could not save his life. This valiant warrior lost the last battle. On 25th September, when his mortal remains arrived from Riyadh, there were thousands of admirers, well-wishers and relatives to offer their shoulders for his final journey to the Rawalpindi Army graveyard.
His untimely death has snatched from us a brilliant soldier, an accomplished writer and a great human being. May Allah in His Beneficence and Mercy Grant him a permanent abode in heavens and give solace to his admirers and well-wishers (Ameen). “Surely to Allah we belong and to Him we shall return”, but General Rafi will live forever through his work, writings and traditions he has set.