An Indian Army officer’s daughter pays tribute to her soldier father on Republic Day via this poem.

The mist of Delhi, thick and grey,
Clung to the stones of India Gate,
Where dawn begins the Republic’s day,
And silent guards in patience wait.

I saw him there, before the sun, before the rain,

A shadow in the winter’s bite,
An officer of the Indian army

Blending in with the light.

He does not bow to caste or creed,
When duty calls his name at four;
The only prayer his spirit heeds
Is peace within his country’s door.

In olive green, he stands so tall,
When temple, mosque, and chapel call,
For most people at the oddly hour

I watch him put his war medals on

As pride on his broad shoulders

A gleam that can never be dimmed

Even with the biggest boulders

Each 26^th January morning he went
To honour the freedom of the soldiers dead

He marched together
With Sikh, Muslim and Hindu, side by side,
And together they keep the darkness away,
Because secularism was his guide.

– Daughter of Col PN Khera, VSM