Senate body on Defence visits Lance Naik Mehfooz Shaheed mausoleum, pays tribute to martyr

F.P. Report

ISLAMABAD: The members of the Senate Standing Committee on Defence, to commemorate the 57th Defence and Martyrs day, on Tuesday visited the mausoleum and home of Lance Naik Mehfooz Shaheed Nishan-e-Haider here and paid great reverence and honoured the supreme sacrifice of the martyr.

The Senator Committee delegation was headed by Chairman Committee Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed flanked by Senators Shahzad Waseem, Waleed Iqbal, Rukhsana Zuberi and Zarqa Suharwardy, a news release said.

Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed with other members marked the day with a visit to the mausoleum of Lance Naik Mehfooz Shaheed, Nishan-i-Haider, Pind Malkan, Islamabad. Chairman of the Committee, Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed laid a wreath and offered Fateha at the mausoleum, and also met members of the martyr’s family.

Senator Mushahid Hussain while addressing a gathering at the mausoleum applauded the exemplary heroism of Shaheed (martyr) and other brave sons of the soil who laid down their lives in Defence of the country.

“We also salute the resilience and resolve of the mothers, fathers and families of our martyrs. The eternal sacrifices of the Pakistan Army for the homeland can never be forgotten. Pakistan army is a National Army and is the guarantor of unity, territorial integrity, sovereignty and stability of the Motherland”, he remarked.

“The presence of representatives from all the provinces of Pakistan and all the political parties is a confirmation that the whole nation is united for national security above Party considerations”, he underlined. “If we are able to sleep peacefully today and live as free citizens of a free country, it is because of the Defenders of the Nation and supreme sacrifices of our brave soldiers”, he underscored.

Senator Mushahid also lauded the Army’s role in flood relief, saving countless lives. Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Dr Shahzad Waseem and Senators Waleed Iqbal, Rukhsana Zuberi, and Zarqa Suharwardy also spoke on the occasion and commended the sacrifices of the Pakistan Army.

To pay rich tribute to the valiant martyr, Lance Naik Mehfooz Shaheed, who sacrificed his life for the motherland during the Indo-Pak War of 1971, Members of the Defence Committee later visited the family of Mehfooz shaheed.

While talking to the family of shaheed, Mushahid Hussain Sayed stated that “Brave sons of the soil had thwarted the nefarious designs of enemy by sacrificing their lives for the nation. Sacrificing lives to protect the motherland was an honour of the nation and we salute his sacrifice and pay respect to his family, he added. A large crowd welcomed the Senators and shouted full-throated slogans of ‘Pakistan Zindabad and Pakistan Army Zindabad’.

Shaheed Lance Naik Mehfooz was born on October 25th, 1944. He sacrificed his life during the Indo-Pak War of 1971. It has been said that despite his wounded leg he reached the enemy bunker from which fire had caused casualties.

There, during strangling with one of the enemy soldiers, he was martyred. On 23 March 1972, he was posthumously bestowed Nishan-i-Haider, the highest gallantry award in Pakistan.

It has been also learnt that in recognition of his audacity, once an Indian Army official said that if he were in the Indian Army, they would also award him with “Param veer chakra”, an Indian high gallantry award. (APP)