CHANDIGARH: Chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Wednesday deplored the ‘attempts to politicise the defence forces’, asserting that the armed forces were meant to report only to their regimental heads and not work at the behest of the political dispensation.
KARUN SHARMAHT■ Punjab CM Capt Amarinder Singh with British deputy high commissioner Andrew Ayre (extreme left), consul general of Canada in UT Mia Yen and former army chief VP Malik in Chandigarh.
He was speaking at a Remembrance Day ceremony here to pay homage to soldiers from Commonwealth nations who had sacrificed their lives during the World War-I.
A two-minute silence was also observed in memory of the martyrs.
The event was also attended by British deputy high commissioner at Chandigarh, Andrew Ayre, and the consul general of Canada in Chandigarh Mia Yen, besides former army chief VP Malik.
“The exemplary valour and indomitable courage of all those great soldiers in preserving the ethos of freedom, liberty and democratic values had remained largely unrecognised,” Captain Amarinder Singh said, pointing out that nearly 74,000 Indian soldiers had attained martyrdom and 67,000 were wounded in the historic war.
He called for aggressive propagation of the nation’s rich military history among the youth, to make them more aware about the rich and glorious legacy of the armed forces