Paan Singh Tomar

Subedar Paan Singh Tomar (1 January 1932 – 1 October 1981) was an Indian soldier, athlete, and rebel (Baaghi).

He served in the Indian Army, where his talent for running was discovered. He was a seven-time national steeplechase champion in the 1950s and 1960s, and represented India at the 1958 Asian Games. After a premature retirement from the army, Tomar returned to his native village. He later gained notoriety as a Daku of Chambal Valley, when he resorted to violence after a land feud there. In late 1981, Tomar was killed in a police encounter, in a village of Bhind district in Madhya Pradesh.

Early life Paan Singh Tomar was born in the small village of Bhidosa, near Porsa, in a Hindu Rajput family, living on banks of the Chambal River, in the erstwhile Tonwarghar district of the princely state of Gwalior, under the rule of the British Raj in India. Tomar's father was Eashwari Singh Tomar, whose younger brother Dayaram Singh Tomar went on to sire a branch of the Tomar family that owns most of the fertile agricultural land in and around the Bhidosa area. Tomar would later go on to murder Babbu Singh Tomar, his nephew and Dayaram Singh Tomar's grandson, in 1977 following a shady land dispute in which Tomar was cheated out of land. When Tomar had just enrolled in his regiment, he got into an argument with an instructor. As punishment, Tomar was ordered to run numerous laps of the parade ground. As he ran, he caught the eye of the other officers. What they saw, impressed them and soon Tomar was exempted from his regular duties and was put on the special diet for army sportsmen and enjoyed other perks and benefits. Tomar was not interested in steeplechase running at first but discovered it in the military. But after his sport's coach request him to run steeplechase. He went on to be the national champion of steeplechasing for seven years. His national record of 9 minutes and 2 seconds in the 3000-meter steeplechase event remained unbroken for 10 years. The army did not allow him to fight in the 1962 Sino-Indian War and Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 due to his career in sports, which ended in 1972.

After retirement Upon retiring in 1977, Tomar returned to Bhidosa village. There arose a land dispute between him and his nephews Jandel Singh, Havaldar Singh, and Babbu Singh Tomar. Babbu Singh Tomar was a powerful landowner, who owned seven licensed guns and was the head of the 200-strong extended Tomar family.

Paan Singh's family Paan Singh's son, Souram Singh Tomar (b. 1959) is a retired Indian Army subedar who lives in Babina in the Jhansi District of Uttar Pradesh. He moved there to flee the violence in Bhidosa.

In popular culture A biographic film, Paan Singh Tomar, was released in 2012, to much critical acclaim. It was written by Sanjay Chouhan and directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia. It starred Irrfan Khan as Paan Singh Tomar, and Mahie Gill as his wife.