Carter dismissed China’s characterisation of a more robust US military presence in the region as being the cause of heightened tensions. A file photo

Aboard the USS John C. Stennis, South China Sea/Beijing, April 15

The chief US defence official visited an American aircraft carrier transiting the disputed South China Sea on Friday, as China said one of its top military officers had visited islands and reefs in the region to oversee building work.

US Defence Secretary Ash Carter flew to the nuclear-powered USS John C. Stennis for a two-hour visit as it sailed 60 to 70 miles west of the Philippines island of Luzon.

While there, he dismissed China’s characterisation of a more robust US military presence in the region as being the cause of heightened tensions.

“What’s new is not an American carrier in this region,” Carter said aboard the Stennis, where he met US troops and observed flight operations. “What’s new is the context of tension which exists which we want to reduce.” China claims almost the entire South China Sea, believed to have huge deposits of oil and gas. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims to parts of the waters, through which about $5 trillion in trade is shipped every year.

The carrier visit, while not unprecedented, was still likely to inflame tension with China, which says the US is “militarising” the South China Sea and endangering security.

Carter made a similar stop at the USS Theodore Roosevelt in November as it transited the South China Sea near Malaysia.

On Friday’s visit, Carter was accompanied by Philippine Defence Secretary Voltaire Gazmin.

The US has already conducted what it calls “freedom of navigation” patrols in the area, sailing within 12-nautical mile territorial limits around disputed islands controlled by China to underscore its right to navigate the seas.

In a brief statement, China’s defense ministry said Fan Changlong, one of the vice chairmen of the Central Military Commission which controls its military, had recently visited some of China’s islands and reefs there.

While not saying where or when he went, it did say he met soldiers and inspected building work. He also visited islands in the contested Spratly archipelago, the ministry said.

China had earlier denounced plans announced in Manila on Thursday to deepen US-Philippine military ties, including joint patrols in the South China Sea, saying they reflected a “Cold War mentality”.

US promoting militarisation, says China

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said the US move was proof of “who was the real promoter of the militarisation of the South China Sea.”

The US had never been able to give an example of civilian freedom of navigation being affected in the South China Sea, he told a daily news briefing.

“In reality, what the US is probably talking about is military freedom of navigation and safety. If that’s the case, then many countries, not only in this region, will hope that these big countries can act in accordance with international law.”

The Stennis has been on a routine deployment in the Western Pacific for three months, said the carrier strike group’s commander, Rear Admiral Ronald Boxall. Their ships interact with Chinese ships on a near-constant basis, he said, though he characterized the Chinese operations as professional.

“We see quite a presence out here,” Boxall said. “It’s more than I’ve seen in the past but that’s reasonable considering they have grown as a navy.”

During the course of a six-day trip to Asia, Carter has maintained that US strategy was aimed at maintaining peace and lawful settlement of disputes, not provoking a conflict with a major world power.

“We have been here for decade upon decade,” Carter said.

“The only reason that question even comes up is because of what has gone on over the last year and that’s a question of Chinese behavior.”

The carrier stop caps a trip designed to highlight the expanding partnerships the United States is building with countries in the region, which Carter said had been asking for a greater US role in response to anxiety over Chinese actions.

In addition to the joint US-Philippines patrols announced on Thursday, hundreds of US troops and some aircraft will stay behind in the Philippines on a temporary rotation.

In India this week, Carter won a preliminary but long-awaited agreement to share military logistics, considered a necessary step to deeper security cooperation between the two countries. — Reuters

Govind Talwalkar
The latest 50 files on Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose released recently dwell on the Japanese offer to transfer the Andaman and Nicobar islands to Netaji’s Provisional Government of Free India. However, the offer made by the then Japanese Prime Minister General Tojo, at the Greater East Asia Conference in 1943, was just specious fiction.

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose inside the Cellular Jail in Port Blair. Netaji arrived in Port Blair on December 29, 1943.

IN the latest 50 files of Netaji, we find that on August 22, 1969, Netaji’s nephew, Amiya Nath Bose, MP, suggested to the government, that they should request the Japanese government to supply them all the relevant diplomatic documents and other records regarding the transfer of Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the  Provisional Government of Free India.The then Foreign Minister asked our ambassador, in Tokyo, accordingly to communicate with his Japanese counterpart. On May 26, 1970, the Japanese sent a copy of the speech made at the Greater East Asia Conference on May 11, 1943, by General Tojo, the Prime Minister of Japan. In that speech, Tojo declared that his government was ready to transfer, in the near future, Andaman and Nicobar islands to Netaji’s Provisional Government of Free India. Netaji, who attended the conference, hailed General Tojo’s announcement and said that such a step would strengthen the free India movement. Later, Netaji said that Andaman was British penal colony, its freedom would be the beginning of the Indian revolution just like the storming of the Bastille was the start of the French Revolution.   However, Tojo’s announcement did not really start the process of the transfer of Islands. There was a slip between the cup and the lip. Nay, ultimately it proved that there was only an empty cup. Since no diplomatic documents were exchanged at that time, decades later the Japanese government had only a text of a speech of their late Prime Minister, who after the end of the war was hanged as a war criminal. The announcement by Tojo might have induced Netaji to think about the storming of the Bastille, but the hard-core civil and military officials of Japan thought of putting restrictions, which they felt were imperative because of the exigencies of war. So the Imperial General Staff deliberated for three months. M. Sivaram, a Press consultant and the broadcasting chief of Netaji’s Provisional Government has noted the outcome of those deliberations in his book, The Road To Delhi, he writes, they did not want their government forced to make any serious commitments. They agreed that Subhas Chandra Bose might form a Provisional Government of Free India and the Japanese government would recognise it, but the instrument of recognition, however, would not be sent to the Privy Council of Japan for ratification.There was also an understanding that the Free India Government would not press Japan for all the normal rights and privileges of an allied government. Japan would send an ambassador to the Free India Government which should not expect a reciprocal diplomatic representation, in Tokyo. The Free India Government was not to seek diplomatic representation at the capitals of the powers which might recognise it. Bose should not attempt any official contact with any foreign government or any military authorities without the knowledge and approval of the Japanese military authorities. In the publicity campaign, Bose and his Government would have unlimited powers, subject to the approval of the Japanese censors. All these stipulations were conveyed to Bose by Colonel Nagai at Singapore, in September and discussed in detail for about a fortnight. How was the life under the Japanese? N. Iqbal Singh’s The Andaman Story gives the details. The cruelty and torture were unprecedented. Besides, as the imports of almost all things became scarce, the prices went skyrocketing. Ghee was  Rs 200 per seer and rice was practically unobtainable. Politically we find that Netaji went ahead with his plan to strengthen the base and the reach of his Provisional Government.  He arrived in Port Blair on December 29, 1943.  His objective was to appoint an Indian Chief Commissioner who would be in charge of the administration of Andaman and Nicobar. The Japanese admiral, in charge of the administration, agreeing to the appointment of an Indian Chief Commissioner, told Bose that for cogent strategic reasons there would be no complete handover during the war, but if the Commissioner cooperated a few departments could be transferred. It seems that Netaji neither rejected any of those conditions nor did he say that he would approach General Tojo to get any amendments. Hugh Toye, in The Springing Tiger, called this transfer of Andaman and Nicobar Islands to Netaji’s Provisional Government a “specious fiction”. During Netaji’s three-day stay, he was always surrounded by the Japanese officials. There was pomp and ceremony but complete lack of enthusiasm in the local populace. Selected Japanese officials and a few Indians accompanied Netaji. One of them was Mushtaq Ali. In the evening, when the Japanese officials were quite high, Mushtaq had the opportunity to whisper into Netaji’s ear about the state of affairs in the Andamans. He requested Netaji that during his visit to the Cellular Jail, the next day, he should ask to be shown the sixth wing of the jail. He singled out the case of Diwan Singh and the torture he was subjected to. However, though Netaji visited the Jail, he did not go to the sixth wing. Bose renamed Andaman as “Shahid Dweep” and Nicobar as “Swaraj Dweep”. Loganathan, appointed by Bose as the Chief Commissioner, did not have any effective power. He visited Singapore and reported to Netaji about what had happened to Diwan Singh and others and how the Japanese were treating the Provisional Government. Unmindful of the conditions under the Japanese, some people in India continued to believe that the Andaman and Nicobar Islands were independent under the Japanese dispensation. On August 22, 1969, the question of changing the names of Andaman and Nicobar islands to Shahid Dweep and Swaraj Dweep came up.  K. R. Ganesh, Deputy Minister, elected from the same constituency, reacting sharply replied that, three-fourths of the island had been completely annihilated by the Japanese fascists. Thousands were thrown in the sea, thousands were decimated and hundreds were jailed. Samar Guha asked whether this happened before or after Netaji. Ganesh categorically replied: “My answer is — before, during and afterwards”.  He then firmly said that the history of the islands did not start in 1943, but in 1857. The name of Andaman is in our soul and we are not going to allow you to change it. Thus, while the independence of Andaman, Nicobar Islands was all Japanese hocus pocus, the assertion of Ganesh had the solid backing of history and the emotions of the people. The writer is a former Editor of  “Maharashtra Times”. The views expressed are personal

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, March 28

With the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) from Pakistan not being taken to Dinanagar town where three alleged Pakistani terrorists had attacked a police station, family members of martyr SP Baljit Singh are angry at the Indian Government for ignoring the attack and the sacrifice made by Punjab Police personnel.Other Punjab Police personnel who participated in the attack are also upset on why Pakistan was not being confronted for carrying out the Dinanagar attack.“The Indian Government has conveniently forgotten the Dinanagar attack. Why is Dinanagar not on the agenda of the Pakistan team? Why did the Centre not raise the issue of Dinanagar with Pakistan?” asks Kulwant Kaur, wife of martyr SP Baljit Singh. Bitter at more importance being given to the Pathankot attack, she said she salutes the heroes of Pathankot, but the Centre can’t give step-motherly treatment to a similar attack that happened a few months ago.

New Delhi, April 8

India is in talks with the US to purchase 40 Predator surveillance drones, officials said, a possible first step towards acquiring the armed version of the aircraft and a development likely to annoy Pakistan.

India is trying to equip the military with more unmanned technologies to gather intelligence as well as boost its firepower along the vast land borders with Pakistan and China.

It also wants a closer eye on the Indian Ocean.

New Delhi has already acquired surveillance drones from Israel to monitor the mountains of Kashmir, a region disputed by the nuclear-armed South Asian rivals and the cause of two of their three wars.

As defence ties deepen with the US, which sees India as a counterweight to China in the region, New Delhi has asked Washington for the Predator series of unmanned planes built by privately-held General Atomics, military officials said.

“We are aware of Predator interest from the Indian Navy. However, it is a government-to-government discussion,” Vivek Lall, chief executive of US and International Strategic Development at San Diego-based General Atomics, told Reuters.

The US government late last year cleared General Atomics’ proposal to market the unarmed Predator XP in India. It was not clear when the delivery of the drones would take place.

The Navy wants them for surveillance in the Indian Ocean, where the pilotless aircraft can remain airborne for 35 hours at a stretch, at a time when the Chinese navy is expanding ship and submarine patrols in the region.

Moves by India to enhance its defence capabilities have in the past provoked sharp reactions from Islamabad, where the government and military are worried about falling further behind their bigger rival in the arms race.

Pakistan’s Foreign Ministry could not be reached for comment on Friday, the start of the weekend there, while the military had no immediate comment.

Carter visit

The Indian Air force has also asked Washington about acquiring around 100 armed Predator C Avenger aircraft, which the US has used to carry out strikes against Islamist militants in Pakistan’s northwest and neighbouring Afghanistan.

But it would need clearance from the Missile Technology Control Regime group of 34 nations as well as approval from the US Congress before any transfer of lethal Predators could happen, officials said.

The push for the drones comes as US Defense Secretary Ash Carter heads to India this weekend for talks to cement military collaboration in the final months of the Obama administration.

Indian military officials said they expected the request for the armed aircraft to figure in Carter’s talks with his counterpart Manohar Parrikar.

Washington wants India to sign a set of agreements, including on the use of each other’s military bases that would help them operate together.

The Narendra Modi government has signalled its willingness to move forward with the proposed pacts after the previous administration did not act for more than a decade.

Retired Air Vice-Marshal Manmohan Bahadur said the proposed acquisition of armed Predators would give the military the ability to carry out cross-border strikes, or even attack targets lying deeper inside a neighbouring country.

“But at the end of the day, it’s a political decision. It’s one thing to lob artillery shells, it’s another to use air power, that’s an escalation,” he said.

India has not moved against Pakistan militarily despite blaming militant groups based there for orchestrating attacks on its soil including one on Mumbai in 2008, in part out of fear it would spiral into a broader conflict.

But a drone strike might be a less risky option, experts said.

Ejaz Haider, a Pakistani security analyst, said Islamabad would object to the transfer of such drones in the region.

But he questioned their effectiveness if they entered Pakistani air space, since it would probably try to shoot them down, something it did not do with US drones.

“There is obviously going to be push-back from Pakistan, because if it (the drone) does get through in some way or other it enhances Indian capability,” he said. — Reuters

https://youtu.be/7LP7CVrQfb4

The Central Armed Police Forces ( commonly referred to as Paramilitary forces) play an important role in border security as well as internal security. Along with the Defence Establishment, they play an important role in National Security. This video is an effort to explain the role played by the Seven Central Armed Police Forces that come under the Ministry of Home Affairs.

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Tribune News Service

Shimla, March 14

Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dhani Ram Shandil told the Vidhan Sabha during the Question Hour today that the state government would consider raising ex gratia relief to families of martyrs from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.He was replying to a question of Anirudh Singh, Congress MLA from Kusumpti, who suggested that the ex gratia relief should be increased to Rs 20 lakh as given to two jawans from the state who died in the recent Pathankot terror attack and pleaded that the same analogy be applied to other martyrs.Shandil said there were two categories for giving compensation to those who died during war and others who laid down their lives in special operation and the grant was decided on case to case.At this stage, Leader of the Opposition PK Dhumal, who was joined by MLA Inder Singh, said “martyrs are martyrs” and there should be no discrimination in amount of relief.

Masood Azhar. Reuters file photo

New Delhi, April 6

India has taken up at a “fairly high level” with China the issue of Beijing blocking its bid to have JeM chief and Pathankot attack mastermind Masood Azhar as designated terrorist by the UN, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar said today.Asserting that India will continue to pursue the matter with China in the context of the UN, he also noted that the government has had a “backing and forthing” on the issue with the Chinese.”My sense is that the particular issue that you referred to is something we have taken up with the Chinese. We have taken it up at a sort of fairly high level and we will continue to pursue this with the Chinese,” Jaishankar said.He was replying to a question during an interaction on India’s position on China blocking for the second time country’s bid at the UN to get Azhar banned.At the same time, he indicated that the issue was not going affect India’s relationship with China in other areas.“This is an issue to be pursued with the Chinese in a UN context. I would not like to give the impression that somehow this is going to overflow into other areas. We have had a backing and forthing with them on this issue. We have to wait and see where this goes,” he said.Last week, China stopped UN sanctions committee from designating Azhar as terrorist, maintaining that the case “did not meet the requirements” of the Security Council.This is not the first time China has blocked India’s bid to get Pakistan-based militant groups and leaders proscribed by the UN.The UN had banned the JeM in 2001 but India’s efforts for slapping sanctions on Azhar after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack also did not fructify as China — that has veto powers — did not allow it apparently at the behest of Pakistan again.Last July, China had similarly halted India’s move in the UN to take action against Pakistan for its release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, saying its stand was “based on facts and in the spirit of objectiveness and fairness” with Beijing again claiming at the time that it was in touch with New Delhi. — PTI

Soldiers being air-dropped at Rohtak. AFP

“Iss se to Angrezon ka raj hi accha tha” (The British rule was better than what we see now),  said an old soldier from Haryana the other day. Having born, brought up and educated in a much bigger joint India, At the age of 21, I, like lakhs of others, bid a forced goodbye to my home and shifted to a truncated India at 21 years after Partition. I loved staying in erstwhile India, which was very peaceful till the time the maverick politicians did not sow the seeds of dissention and religious divide among gullible people. Consequent to Khattar’s announcement in Rohtak on February 15, that the government would wait till March 31 for the report of the committee dealing with the Jat reservation, the latter became restive and  started blocking roads and carrying out protest marches. The non-Jats resented this and began anti-reservation marches, resulting in clashes between Jats and non-Jat groups. This was followed by burning of shops, houses, vehicles, business establishments and offices. Shamefully, on February 22 at Murthal on NH 10, women were forcibly  pulled out of cars by goons, dragged to the fields and gangraped. Their cars were burnt, their husbands were looted and beaten up. There was a discernible division between the ministers and bureaucrats on the basis of caste. This resulted in the collapse of the state machinery. The Haryana police failed to grapple with the worsening situation. At best, some of them acted as a shield between the clashing groups. The rest stood as if nothing had happened. On February 18, rioting took an ugly turn in Rohtak when the rival protesting groups clashed and threw stones at each other and the police.  After that, the BSF troops were deployed. On February 19, the protesters clashed with the police and the BSF personnel. Three persons were killed and more than 100 injured when the security forces opened fire to control the rioters. The police personnel vanished from the scene of violence and even abandoned their posts on February 20. The Army was airdropped at Rohtak on the same day.  The Army carried out a flag march in Rohtak on February 20. The violence by now had spread to several towns in Haryana. After the Army was deployed in parts of Hisar on February 22 and despite the curfew, armed mobs looted, ransacked and burnt down  at least 20 houses at village Dhani Pal. The policemen and an Army column, as per the media reports, failed to control the mob. According to the rule book, law and order is a state subject, it should be controlled by the state police in conjunction with the state armed police. When the situation goes out of the hands of the police, the paramilitary forces are called in, If they too blink, then the Amy, which is government’s last resort, is called in to restore order. Soon after their deployment on this duty,  both police and paramilitary forces start looking over their shoulders for the Army to come and control the situation.  Because of this mindset, they do not take the situation seriously. If commanders of these forces are taken to task for dereliction of duty (as it happens in the Army), they will willy-nilly accomplish their task. Displaying the might of the Army had a catalytic effect on the civil population during the British regime because it was kept away from the people. Its sudden appearance on he scene did, therefore, ring a warning bell in the minds of the trouble makers.                                                                                                                 The flag marches by the Army have become very common. That is why they have lost their effect these days, thanks to the deteriorating law and order situation in the country. These marches are undertaken by the Army when it comes on the scene to create a deterrent in the minds of undesirable elements and to restore confidence among the peace-loving citizens. But unfortunately, the flag marche achieve none of these objectives. On the contrary, these marches can do more harm than good as the marching or mounted columns present a good target to the trained and well-equipped trouble makers. Given the current situation in the country, every move by the troops in the disturbed areas should be tactical and not ceremonial.After the deployment of the Army in Haryana on February 20, there was hardy any media coverage about it. This was unusual  as the Army always comes in for praise whenever it is deployed to quell disturbances. The only mention about it was that “the Army column (in Hisar) failed to control the mob.” There was a whisper in certain quarters that, like the police, the Army also gave a short shrift to law and order in Haryana. Accountability has become the worst casualty in modern India. It is a free-for-all situation and you can get away even after committing a heinous crime, provided you have tonnes of money and /or political support. Ironically, the hedge has started eating the crop. It has become a fashion to wear religion and caste on one’s sleeves and brag about it loudly. Surprisingly, all our problems stem from indecision of the politicians. This reminds one of what William James said: “There is no more miserable human being than one in whom nothing is habitual but indecision”. Who will stem the rot?The writer, a retired Colonel, is a defence columnist.