Last stand of INS Khukri: Torpedoed by Pakistan while hunting the Hangor

Only four warships have been torpedoed since World War II. One of them was India's INS Khukri, the first and only Indian Navy vessel to be lost in action. The sinking of Iran's IRIS Dena by a US submarine has brought naval warfare back into focus. In this article, we revisit the last stand of INS Khukri during the Indo-Pak War of 1971, and the sacrifice of Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla.

"The captain goes down with the ship", is a maritime tradition dating from the 19th Century, where the captain holds the ultimate responsibility for both the ship and everyone embarked on it. If a warship is hit and is sinking, the captain will not abandon their post until each and every member of the crew and passenger is safe and sound, even if it results in their death. It was this maritime tradition, that Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla, commanding officer of the Indian Navy frigate, INS Khukri upheld, even as his ship slipped under the waves on December 9, 1971, after being torpedoed by the Pakistani submarine, PNS Hangor in the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war.

We are telling you the story of the valiant last stand of the INS Khukri because the Indian Ocean recently bore witness to a warship being sunk after it was torpedoed by a submarine. On March 4, a US Navy submarine torpedoed and sunk the Iranian Navy warship, the IRIS Dena, 40 miles off the coast of Sri Lanka. This was only the fourth warship to have been torpedoed since World War Two. INS Khukri of the Indian Navy was one of the four.

The circumstances around the sinking of INS Khukri were, however, very different. Unlike the sinking of the IRIS Dena, where the ship was caught unaware by a US submarine, the INS Khukri was on the hunt. It had detected and engaged the Pakistani submarine, PNS Hangor, with anti-submarine mortars after the Pakistani vessel fired a torpedo at another Indian Navy ship, the INS Kirpan.

Unfortunately, the Khukri missed the submarine, which responded with a second torpedo, hitting the Khukri and detonating her fuel tanks. The Khukri sank, according to some accounts, within two minutes, taking 194 sailors of all ranks with her, including Captain Mahendra Nath Mulla, who stayed at his post despite the insurmountable odds.

The sinking of the Khukri took place in the midst of the 1971 Indo-Pakistan war, which saw the Indian Armed Forces launch a decisive intervention to liberate the people of East Pakistan (now Bangladesh). So, before we go into the events surrounding the INS Khukri's gallant stand, let's have a look at what preceded the sinking.

While most of the fighting took place in Bangladesh, the Arabian Sea witnessed its fair share of action as the Indian Navy sought to ensure reinforcements and supplies from Pakistan could not reach its forces in the East.