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On9December 1971 Pakistan Navy submarine Hangor while patrolling in its allocated area off the Indian Khatiawar coast under the command of Commander Ahmed Tasnim (later Vice Admiral) located, tracked and fired a homing torpedo at the Indian anti-submarine frigate Khukri. The torpedo hit the frigate on its magazine which exploded and the ship sankin two minutes along with its crew of 18 officers and 176 sailors.
In order to understand the significance of this operation it will be necessary to review briefly the situation in which the action took place.
Until the sinking of the Khukrion 9 December the war at sea was not going well for the Pakistan Navy. On the outbreak of hostilities the Indian Navy carried out two attacks by OSA missile boats on 4 and 6 December 1971. In the first attack PNS Khaiber and PNS Muhafiz received missile hits and sank. In the second attack PNS Dacca, the replenishment tanker of Pakistan Navy which happened to be atManora anchorage, received a missile hit but miraculously survived due to the courage and vigilance of its commanding officer and the crew. Two neutral merchant ships Harmattan and Gulf Star at Manora anchorage also received a missile hit each. The former sank but the latter survived. Incidentally, sinking of merchant ships in this manner without first placing the crew at a safe place was in grave violation of Geneva Conventions.
The loss of these two ships caused some unrest in a section of naval personnel. It is important to understand the cause of this unrest for it...