The Gandhi Brigade or the 2nd Guerrilla Regiment of the

Indian National Army The Indian National Army (INA; ''Azad Hind Fauj'' ; 'Free Indian Army') was a collaborationist armed force formed by Indian collaborators and Imperial Japan on 1 September 1942 in Southeast Asia during World War II. Its aim was to secure In ...

formed a part of the

First INA The First Indian National Army (First INA) was the Indian National Army as it existed between February and December 1942. It was formed with Japanese aid and support after the Fall of Singapore and consisted of approximately 12,000 of the 40,0 ...

and later formed a part of the 1st Division after its revival under Subhas Chandra Bose. Formed in September 1942, named after the Indian freedom fighter

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...

, the unit came under the command of Col Inayat Kiani and consisted of two infantry battalions, 1st battalion was commanded by Captain

Malik Munawar Khan Awan Malik Munawar Khan Awan () was a Major rank officer in the Pakistan Army, whose career had begun in the British Indian Army and included spells in the Imperial Japanese Army and the revolutionary Indian National Army that fought against the All ...

. It participated in the INA's

Imphal Campaign ) , partof = the Operation U-Go during the Burma Campaign in the South-East Asian theatre of World War II , image = Imphalgurkhas.jpg , image_size = 300 , caption = Gurkhas advancing with Grant tanks ...

where Munawar initially routed the 16th Indian Infantry Division and caused heavy casualties through frequent ambushes. It later came under the command of

Shah Nawaz Khan Shah (; fa, شاه, , ) is a royal title that was historically used by the leading figures of Iranian monarchies.Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. 1 (1989) It was also used by a variety of ...

in 1944 and fought around the

Irrawaddy Irrawaddy may refer to: *Irrawaddy River, the main river of Burma *Irrawaddy Delta, a rice growing region of the country *Ayeyarwady Region, an administrative division of Burma *''The Irrawaddy'', a Burmese news publication based in Chiang Mai, Tha ...

, against the successful Allied Burma Campaign.

References

*Fay, Peter W. (1993), ''The Forgotten Army: India's Armed Struggle for Independence, 1942-1945.'' Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press., {{Indian National Army South-East Asian theatre of World War II Military units and formations of the Indian National Army

See also

References