Sarfaraz Rafiqui, the lionheart

Chivalric, dynamic, iconic RafiquiDare devil, steadfast, symbolic RafiquiAllegory implicated by panthers of PureMercurial, oceanic, ‘n quite at the shore;Undaunted commander with aims gorgeousVisionary, brave-hearted, upright, ferociousArrogant Goliath, challenging David’s linesExplosions, fire- fury welcoming the lionsDeath, no way could scathe or meet e’mMartyrdom was joyous to embrace and greet e’mVictorious by the divine will of AllahLegacy n’ annals, of thirsty KerbalaVeterans’ envy their maestro and legendHis stature, a human cannot comprehend;Disciple, the Younus a leopard of zealBravery, no match to the men of steel“Turn to kill only” was order of the dayWith comrade and airmen-ship, kill all the preyCrusadic commandments of supreme mentorFollowed PAF’s traditions, norms n’ culture;Cecil Chaudhry, the stalwart of triad not the duoShot out of thirteen, the enemy’s twoImpounding upon the ugly oppressorsThwarted the whoosh and dungeon curatorsWilling to be slained, a staunch HijaziEmerged out as a respected GhaziThose who fell as per will of AllahAre alive forever, Alhumd-o-lillah, Alhumd-o-lillahOn 6 September 1965, Squadron Leader Sarfaraz Ahmad Rafiqui led a formation of three F-86 aircraft to attack the Indian airfield of Halwara. As they proceeded to attack, guns of his aircraft jammed due to a defect and stopped firing. Acting beyond the call of duty, Rafiqui refused to leave the battlefield and tried to give the formation as much protection as possible with an unarmed aircraft. In the process, his aircraft was shot down and he fell as a martyr. Rafiqui was awarded Hilal-i-Juraat.Poem by the late Professor Taha KhanTranslation by Air Commodore (retd) Adnan Khan (Ibn-e-Taha)

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