Hyderabad, Sept. 17 -- Ejaz-Ul-Haq was just 10 years old when Operation Polo, or the annexation of Hyderabad took place. Remembered as the 'Police Action', it was done to merge or annexe the erstwhile Hyderabad State to the Indian Union on September 17, 1948. His father was a jagirdar (state appointed landlord) in Osmanabad district of Maharshtra, which was then under the Hyderabad state.

The family was wealthy and lived in a luxurious haveli with a number of servants serving them. Before the Indian Army entered Osmanabad, the collector and higher officials had fled the city. As the forces entered the city, Ejaz, along with children, women and aged family members hid in the basement of their two-storeyed bungalow. His father, uncles and ...