Repugnant battle honours of the Indian Army

The Government of India has declared repugnant some battle honours earned by Indian Army units, which are descended from erstwhile units of the Presidency armies under the East India Company and later under the British Indian Army of the British Raj.[1] Indian Army units do not inscribe these battle honours on their colours and do not celebrate commemoration days associated with these battles.[2] This decision was taken post-independence regarding those battle honours concerned with battles in India and Pakistan which the Indian government regards as part of the "subjugation" of India and in some cases, neighbouring countries.[3][4]

This article is about the battle honours of the Indian Army declared repugnant. For the battle honours considered non-repungnant, see Battle and theatre honours of the Indian Army.

List of repugnant battle honours

Repugnant battle honours include :

Non-repugnant battle honours

The earliest battle honour held by the modern Indian Army which is not considered by the Indian Government to be "repugnant" and can be emblazoned on colours is "Bourbon" (dated 8 July 1810) which is held by the 3rd Battalion, Brigade of the Guards. Battle honours prior to this period have either been lost due to disbandment, are now held only by units transferred to Pakistan during Partition, or are considered by the Indian Government to be repugnant.[3]: 78 

Other pre-World War I battle honours not considered by the Indian Government to be repugnant are as follows :[3]: 297 

  • Sphinx symbol depicting the campaign in Egypt, 1801 awarded to Madras Sappers. It has been declared repugnant by the Indian government.
    Sphinx symbol depicting the campaign in Egypt, 1801 awarded to Madras Sappers. It has been declared repugnant by the Indian government.
  • Elephant emblem depicting the Battle of Assaye, 1803 awarded to Madras Sappers. It has been declared repugnant by the Indian government.
    Elephant emblem depicting the Battle of Assaye, 1803 awarded to Madras Sappers. It has been declared repugnant by the Indian government.
  • Dragon symbol depicting the campaign in China, during the First Opium War, 1840 awarded to Madras Sappers. It has been declared repugnant by the Indian government.
    Dragon symbol depicting the campaign in China, during the First Opium War, 1840 awarded to Madras Sappers. It has been declared repugnant by the Indian government.

See also

Notes
  • Sandes, Lt Col E.W.C. The Indian Sappers and Miners (1948) The Institution of Royal Engineers, Chatham. Pages i to xxx, 1 to 726, frontispiece and 30 illustrations, 31 general maps and 51 plans.

References
  1. "The Official Home Page of the Indian Army". www.indianarmy.nic.in. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  2. Dutta, Amrita Nayak (7 June 2021). "New marching tunes, no more pre-1947 battle honours — armed forces set to get more 'Indian'". ThePrint. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
  3. Singh, Sarbans (1993) Battle Honours of the Indian Army 1757 - 1971. Vision Books (New Delhi) ISBN 81-7094-115-6
  4. "Haldighati and elsewhere: Battle honours wanted and unwanted". The Indian Express. 30 August 2017. Retrieved 12 June 2021.


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