IMA displays Niazi's weapon

The Indian Military Academy on Monday displayed at a press conference the revolver handed over to the Indian officers by General A K A Niazi after Pakistan's surrender in the 1971 war.

The IMA said security around the institution's museum, where the revolver is kept, is being strengthened in view of the theft of a pistol from the National Museum in Delhi last week.

IMA Commandant Lt Gen T S Shergill, displaying the weapon and photographs showing its surrender to Lt Gen J S Aurora, army's eastern commander in Dhaka then, said: "The priceless symbol of our glorious victory was presented to the then IMA Commandant Lt Gen M Thomas on December 9, 1982 by Aurora during the golden jubilee celebrations."

In view of the theft of a pistol, which was described as Niazi's in media reports, from the National Museum in Delhi, Shergill said the security in and around the IMA museum is being strengthened.

''There are several weapons and documents of medieval age kept at the IMA museum and we are going to review our security arrangements,'' he said.

Niazi's weapon, considered as a token of final and  unconditional surrender of all his forces on December 16, 1971, "has a very emotive value and is a source of inspiration for our cadets and future army officers," Lt Gen Shergill said.