Yes he was a truly a professional soldier imbibed with the ultimate sense of duty and honor.
Sure most will love him or hate him for his role in the 1971 destruction of the then East Pakistan. However that should not cloud our view of this straight shooter, who (sadly) was among the last surviving soldiers of the grand old British Indian Army.
I remember seeing his TV interviews. He was honest and candid. He was an unwilling commander of Indian Army that was pushed into attacking a sovereign country called East Pakistan.
At the end, he obeyed orders like a loyal soldier. He did confess that Indians trained and equipped 60,000 Bengali insurgents. These insurgents were then pushed into East Pakistan to conduct a campaign of murder and mayhem. This was not too unlike the modern day Iraqi insurgents being trained by the neighboring countries.
We can argue about who-dun-it for East Pakistan until the Kingdom comes, and perhaps write 100's of posts filled with arguments and counter arguments.
It was Generals like him who treated Pakistani POWs with utter respect and dignity. Almost all of our POW soldiers came home a bit famished but alive. He knew that Pakistan soldiers were simply caught in the evil designs of politicians like Indira, Mujeeb, and Bhutto.
We must not forget how our Islamists are treating our soldiers these days. We must remember Haroon ul Islam and others who were so mercilessly killed by Arab inspired maulvis.
However this is the day to mourn the loss of a great soldier. Let's pray for his soul that God may forgive his sins.
Good bye dear General, Good bye a great soldier. May your soul rest in peace.