Force K6 were an all Muslim Punjabi regiment mainly from the Pakistan side of pre-partition India that escaped from Dunkirk during World War 2 and arrived in Britain eventually making their way to Scotland. Once here, the mule transport regiment trained and supplied the defences from the Scottish Highlands.
The stories of the British Indian Army's own "Force K6" ...
... assembled into a series of podcast episodes.
Colourful Heritage Presents:
Finding Force K6
Who are Force K6?
Join us on a journey as we unravel the stories, struggles and successes of Force K6, featuring guests such as Ghee Bowman, author of the ‘The Indian Contingent – The Forgotten Muslim Soldiers of Dunkirk’.
Colourful Heritage aim to find surviving Force K6 veterans and any of their relatives, by spreading the word and reaching out to as many people as possible. In order to achieve this, we need your help!
Who were Force K6? What is Colourful Heritage? Dr Saqib Razzaq, the project manager for Colourful Heritage, gives her insight into how and why Colourful Heritage was founded, and a brief history of the Punjabi Muslim soldiers of Force K6 and their quest to find any information and artefacts from their relatives or any surviving Force K6 veterans in Pakistan.
Ghee Bowman has been researching Force K6 for over 5 years and has recently published his book: ‘The Indian Contingent – The Forgotten Muslim Soldiers of Dunkirk’. This episode explores the daily routines of the soldiers and their struggles in adapting to the unfamiliar environments of France, and Britain. Ghee discusses the paucity of historical recognition of the efforts of our Pakistani soldiers.
Hamish Johnston is the author of ‘A Corner of Pakistan in Scotland’. In this episode, Hamish paints us a vivid picture of the daily lives of the Force K6 soldiers, the deaths of these soldiers, as well as their struggles with the harsh weathers of Scotland. In our journey with the Punjabi Muslim soldiers, Hamish recounts the details of a trial for the murder of Corporal Sadiq in Inverness, Scotland.
In continuation of our interview with Hamish, we step into some of the activities that the pre-partition Indian contingent had participated in, such as the cattle fair in 1942 at Lairg and competitive sports events with the British Infantry Regiments. Hamish also highlights how the British Army catered to the religious and cultural needs of the Indian contingent.
What happened to the soldiers once they left Scotland? Do any of the Force K6 soldiers’ families know of their efforts? Are there any surving veterans? Learn more about our Punjabi Muslim soldiers’ memories from our conversation with historian Dr Ghee Bowman.
In this episode, Dr Ghee Bowman gets into the details of the soldiers of the 22nd company who were captured by the Germans during WW2 and held as prisoners of war for nearly 5 years! Encouraged by Subhas Chandra Bose, many of these prisoners ended up joining the German army.
Isobel Harling, nicknamed “wee Mac” by intelligence officers, served in the Women’s Royal Naval Service during World War 2. She has selflessly taken care of the graves of the Force K6 soldiers for over 70 years! In this episode, we sit down with Isobel’s granddaughter, Geraldine Craig, to hear her story about her grandmother’s acceptance of others, embracing diversity and her interactions with the soldiers!
“We’ve all got a responsibility as a society to come together in peace and demonstrate that peace, otherwise, it can be forgotten. Isn’t that the best kind of memorial?” Geraldine reminds us of the impact of the values exhibited by Isobel, such as being selfless, committed and caring for others. Epitomising these values and instilling them in today’s youth is the question of this week’s episode.
Help Us Find Force K6
Colourful Heritage are on a mission to find:
- Any surviving Force K6 veterans
- Family of Force K6 soldiers
- Items belonging to these soldiers such as letters, swords or uniforms
We have collected the names and Pakistan based residences of the Force K6 soldiers buried in Scotland. These have been incorporated into videos in both English and Urdu, which you can watch below.
