The amazing tale of ‘Turnouti’ Fateh

THERE is a trend in the armed forces of calling some comrades by names other than the given ones. I had thought that this happened mostly among officers — Mandeep became Mandy, KJS was nicknamed Tiny or Kapoor distorted to Cooper. When I joined my unit in Manipur in the early 1980s, I realised that such names were common among all ranks. So, we had Dauriya (runner) Malkit, Boxer Karnail and likewise. But the name that stumped me was ‘Turnouti’ Fateh.

Sepoy Fateh Singh ‘Turnouti’ was in my company. My ego prevented me from asking him how he got that name, but I found it out soon. Turnout is a typical fauji term for appearance. And Fateh was the complete opposite of that — nothing seemed coordinated in his body, neither limbs nor clothes nor pagri. The nickname was obviously tongue in cheek. Fateh was an apt example of a village simpleton: a good-at-heart halfwit. His colleagues would keep pulling his leg, but he chose to ignore them.

Incidentally, Fateh was a Sena Medal awardee. I asked the JCO what feat he had performed to be conferred with this medal. The story was hilarious. Apparently, the Commanding Officer (CO) got a tip-off that a militant of the banned NSCN(IM) was taking refuge in a house at Ukhrul. He rushed out of his office and called for his vehicle as well as the quick response team. On the way out, he told sentries at the gate to hop in. Fateh was one of them. On reaching the house in question, the troops fanned out to form a cordon. The JCO deployed Fateh at a location which he assessed was the least likely route the militant may take to escape. But as luck would have it, the militant came out firing exactly that way. And Fateh, who as per the JCO couldn’t hit a truck at a distance of 100 metres, fired one burst that downed the militant. It was the first ‘kill’ of an NSCN(IM) militant at Ukhrul, and Fateh was named for the Sena Medal.

One day, the JCO came to report that Fateh had to go on leave, and as per the CO’s orders, one escort would accompany him till New Delhi. “Why?” I asked. The explanation was amazing. Apparently, Fateh was from the village of then President Giani Zail Singh. Fateh’s father and Gianiji had studied together in a primary school. Every time Fateh went on leave, he would spend a day or two at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. Hence, as per the CO’s order, an escort would go along with Fateh. Once in Delhi, he would ensure that Fateh took a bath, wore clean and ironed clothes, and neatly tied a turban. Subsequently, Fateh would be taken to the Rashtrapati Bhavan. The JCO, who had once performed this duty, recalled that when the President entered the room where they were waiting, he (JCO) immediately saluted the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, while Fateh rushed towards Gianiji, touched his feet and then hugged him.

“That’s why the CO wants that Fateh must be neat and clean when he meets the President,” the JCO said with a smile.

Musings