About Operation Vijay
Operation Vijay was the tri-service military operation launched by the Indian Armed Forces on December 17–19, 1961, to liberate the Portuguese-held territories of Goa, Daman and Diu. The roughly 36-hour operation ended 451 years of Portuguese colonial rule, begun when Afonso de Albuquerque captured Goa in 1510. It was approved by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and executed under Defence Minister V.K. Krishna Menon and Army Chief General P.N. Thapar.
Freedom Struggle
- Tristão de Bragança Cunha, the “father of Goan nationalism”, founded the Goa Congress Committee in 1928.
- 1946: Ram Manohar Lohia led a satyagraha in Goa calling for civil liberties and integration with India.
- Armed resistance groups, notably the Azad Gomantak Dal (AGD), targeted Portuguese administrative control with Indian government support.
Nehru’s Delay and the Trigger for Action
- Portugal, a founding NATO member (1949), declared Goa an “overseas province” in 1951, complicating India’s military options due to fears of NATO involvement.
- August 15, 1955 (Patradevi Satyagraha): Portuguese police fired on unarmed Indian satyagrahis, killing between 21 and 30 people.
- The final trigger was Portuguese firing on the Indian passenger boat Sabarmati, after which Nehru declared on December 10, 1961 that continued Portuguese rule in Goa was “an impossibility”.
The Military Operation for liberation of Goa
- Commenced December 17, 1961, with about 30,000 troops in a coordinated land, sea and air assault.
- Battle of Goa Harbour (December 18): Indian Navy ships forced the Portuguese frigate NRP Afonso de Albuquerque to surrender.
- INS Delhi shelled and forced the surrender of Diu Fort; the Navy also captured Anjadip Island.
- Governor-General Manuel António Vassalo e Silva signed the instrument of surrender on December 19, 1961, disobeying Lisbon’s order for a “scorched earth” policy.
Aftermath
- Goa, Daman and Diu were annexed as a Union Territory under Article 239 of the Constitution; Goa attained full statehood in 1987.
- December 19 is observed as Goa Liberation Day.
- The USSR and the Non-Aligned Movement backed India, using its UN veto to block a US–UK–French resolution; the US, UK and NATO criticized the action.
- Portugal recognized Indian sovereignty only in 1974, after an anti-colonial coup in Lisbon.
Conclusion
Operation Vijay completed India’s post-independence territorial consolidation by ending 451 years of Portuguese colonial rule in Goa, Daman and Diu through a swift 36-hour tri-service assault in December 1961. Its legacy is invoked as the foundation for later assertions of military self-confidence, including Operation Sindoor.
| This concept has been elaborately discussed in the following article – Tribute to Goa Liberation Satyagrahis |