Rifleman Nishant Malik

Rifleman Nishant Malik originally hailed from Dhanderi village but later his family settled down in Hansi town of Hisar district in Haryana. Son of an army veteran Jaivir Malik, Rfn Nishant Malik had three sisters Kiran, Jyoti and Neeraj as his siblings. Right from his younger days, he always wished to follow in the footsteps of his father, who got injured during the Kargil war and retired in the year 2018. Following his passion, he joined the army after completing his school education in the year 2019 at the age of 19 years. 

He was recruited into the 11 Raj Rif battalion of the Rajputana Rifles Regiment, an infantry Regiment known for its brave soldiers and numerous battle honours. Rfn Nishant Malik appeared for his BA final year exam in July and had returned to his unit on July 18 2022, after one-and-a-half months’ leave. He was already engaged was soon to married in Dec 2022, but the destiny had something else in store for him. 

Parghal Operation (Rajouri - J&K) : 11 Aug 2022

During 2022, Rfn Nishant Malik‘s unit 11 Raj Rif battalion was deployed in the Rajouri district of J&K. The unit troops were engaged in operations against the terrorists on a regular basis as the unit's area of responsibility (AOR) was active with militancy. The area was also prone to infiltration, which necessitated regular armed patrols to check any infiltration from across the border. The AOR of the unit also spanned over dense jungle and remote rugged mountainous terrain with extreme weather conditions, especially in the winter season. On 11 Aug 2022, a group of armed terrorists dressed in police uniforms attacked the 11 Raj Rif base at the Parghal area in Darhal tehsil of Rajouri district.

At around 2 AM on 11 Aug 2022, alert sentries of the 11 Raj Rif post detected suspicious persons approaching their post taking advantage of the inclement weather and dense foliage. On being challenged, the two terrorists threw grenades and attempted to gain entry inside the post.  As the situation turned dangerous and took threatening proportions, Rfn Nishant Malik was joined by some more troops of the unit.  A fierce gun battle ensued thereafter as the troops cordoned off the area and engaged the terrorists thereby pinning them down. The gun battle continued for four hours with a heavy exchange of fire from both sides. Eventually, Rfn Nishant Malik and his comrades managed to eliminate the two terrorists who had dared to attack the 11 Raj Rif post. However, during the exchange of fire, Rfn Nishant Malik and five other soldiers got severely injured in the operation. The injured soldiers were shifted to the medical facility of the Army, but Rfn Nishant Malik and three other soldiers Sub Rajendra Prasad Bhambhu, Rifleman Manoj Kumar Bhati and Rifleman Lakshmanan D soon succumbed to their injuries and were martyred. Another soldier Hav Satyapal Singh too lost the battle for life after 10 days. Rfn Nishant Malik was a fearless and committed soldier, who laid down his life in the line of his duty at a very young age of 21 yrs.

Rfn Nishant Malik is survived by his parents three sisters Kiran, Jyoti and Neeraj.