Monthly Archives: August 2018

ribune News Service
New Delhi, December 15

The Centre today moved the Supreme Court seeking correction in the Rafale deal judgment where a reference has been made about the Comptroller and Auditor General report and Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee, saying “misinterpretation” of its note has “resulted in a controversy”.

“The error… appears to have occurred, perhaps, on account of a misinterpretation of a couple of sentences in a note handed over to this court in a sealed cover,” the Centre said, seeking “correction in two sentences of paragraph 25 of the December 14 verdict”.

In a huge relief to the Narendra Modi government, the SC had yesterday dismissed petitions seeking a probe into the India-France deal for procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets.

Giving a clean chit, a three-judge Bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice KM Joseph had said pricing details of the Rs 58,000 crore deal had been examined by the CAG and PAC.

“The pricing details have, however, been shared with the CAG, and the report of the CAG has been examined by the PAC. Only a redacted portion of the report was placed before Parliament, and is in public domain,” read a portion of paragraph 25 of the 29-page verdict.

However, Congress leaders and petitioners had pointed out that the CAG was yet to submit its report and there was no question of the PAC having examined it. “The government lied in the Supreme Court that the CAG report was presented in the House and in the PAC, and PAC has probed it. The government said it (the report) is in public domain. Where is it? Have you seen it?” asked senior Congress leader and PAC chairman Mallikarjun Kharge.

Now, in its application filed in the top court, the Centre said: “The observations in the judgment have also resulted in a controversy in the public domain, and would warrant correction by this court in the interest of justice.”

“The submission by the Union of India, to the effect that the report of the CAG ‘is’ examined by the PAC, was a description of the procedure followed in the normal course, in regard to the reports of the CAG. The very fact that the present tense ‘is’ is used would mean that the reference is to the procedure which will be followed as and when the CAG report is ready.

“Similarly, the statement that only a redacted version of the report ‘is’ placed before Parliament, is referred to in the judgment as ‘only a redacted portion of the report was placed before Parliament, and is in public domain’,” the Centre submitted in its application.

“…Unfortunately, an element of misinterpretation of the statement made in the note/bullet points… appears to have crept in. This has also resulted in a controversy being raised in the public domain,” read the Centre’s application.

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 8

India faces a tough challenge in Afghanistan as the Taliban, backed by Russia and China, gets mainstreamed. It could soon get control over some parts of the strife-torn country.

Discussing what is, in strategic circles, termed the “new great game”, leading strategic thinkers from the Intelligence-gathering community, military and diplomacy — speaking at the Military Literature Festival here on Saturday — warned how India is being edged out.

The original phrase “great game” (1813-1907) stems from the expansionist policies of the British empire and the Czar-led Russia.

Maj Gen BK Sharma (retd), who heads the Centre for Strategic Studies and Simulation at the United Services Institution (CS3), said: “We are in the new Cold War. The strategic embrace of Russia and China is to push out the US from Afghanistan.”

The General cited the “reconciliation talks” at Moscow where the Taliban came up with an irreconcilable list of demands like the release of 30,000 prisoners, rewriting of Afghanistan’s Constitution  and asking the US to leave. “India is getting isolated. Russia is playing a game to avenge the US-forced withdrawal of the erstwhile USSR (from Afghanistan) in 1989. China is playing a subtle game.”

An anti-US alliance has emerged, forcing the US to open a direct channel with the Taliban. “India should try and bring the US to become a forerunner of any reconciliation process,” said the General, who has just returned from the India-Afghan security dialogue in Kabul. India had a principled stance that it would not talk to the Taliban, he added.

Suggesting a more realistic approach, former Ambassador Gurjit Singh suggested: “We tend to lose friends quickly. The need is to make more friends without trying being to be the ‘Vatican’ or moralistic about it.” He said new rules of the game were emerging and “we have to be ready to play by the new rules”.

“In the 1970s, we wanted the US out of Indian Ocean, now we want the US to remain there and keep the Chinese out. Our worry is China’s move into southern Indian Ocean and the US may not do much about it.”

China-watcher and officer of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) Jayant Ranade said: “The US has allowed China to grow. Today we are witnessing a scramble between the US and China to grab more authority or retaining what they have.”

“The suspicion Moscow and Beijing have of each other will show up soon,” asserted Ranade. Tilak Devasher, former director of the Intelligence Bureau, who has authored ‘Pakistan: At the Helm’, moderated the discussion.

New Delhi, December 4

The government has rejected a long-standing demand of the armed forces for higher Military Service Pay (MSP) for over 1.12 lakh military personnel, including Junior Commissioned Officers of the Army, official sources said on Tuesday.

They told PTI that the Army headquarters is “very anguished” over the decision by the Finance Ministry, and will seek its immediate review.

Around 1.12 lakh military personnel, including 87,646 JCOs and 25,434 personnel of equivalent rank from the Navy and the Indian Air Force, will be affected by the decision.

The demand was to increase the monthly MSP from Rs 5,500 to Rs 10,000 and the total annual financial outgo would have been Rs 610 crore if the government had accepted the demand, sources said.

The MSP for the military personnel was introduced recognising their unique service conditions and hardships. 

“The proposal for higher MSP for JCOs and equivalent rank of the Navy and IAF has been rejected by the Finance Ministry,” said a source.

At present, the MSP has two categories-one for officers and another for JCOs and jawans.

The seventh Pay Commission had fixed Rs 5,200 as MSP per month for JCOs and jawans while putting it at Rs 15,500 for officers between Lieutenant-rank and Brigadier-rank.

The Army has been pressing for granting an higher MSP to the JCOs, arguing that they are gazetted officers (Group B) and play a very vital role in command and control structure of the force.

“Since JCOs are Group B gazetted officers and also have considerable length of service, it is incorrect to grant them MSP on par with the jawans. It is very unfair,” said a military officer who wished not to be named.

The Army had taken up the issue strongly with the Defence Minister and the three services as well as the Defence Ministry were on the same page on the issue, the sources said.

The MSP was first introduced by the 6th Pay Commission, accounting for compensation for intangible aspects of military service.

It accounts for a range of “hardships and disadvantages” which cannot be evaluated while assessing pay comparability.

The concept of MSP for armed forces personnel is widely prevalent in European countries.

The armed forces were pressing for a separate slab of MSP for JCOs and equivalent rank.

In November last year, the Army clarified JCOs are gazetted officers and cancelled a seven-year-old note describing them as “non-gazetted” officers.

The decision by the Army came amid growing resentment among a large section of its officers over the controversial issue of rank-parity between them and their civilian counterparts in the service headquarters. – PTI

Pune: The Indian Army is not yet ready to have women in combat roles, Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat said on Friday. The Army chief, however, said there are several other fields where the Army is thinking of inducting women, such as information and psychological warfare.

“We are not yet ready for that (women in combat roles) as facilities have to be created… Women also need to be prepared for that kind of hardships,” he said.

“It is not easy. Let us not compare ourselves with Western nations, which are more open,” Gen Rawat told reporters on the sidelines of the Passing Out Parade of the 135th course at the National Defence Academy in Pune.

“Yes, we may be more open in our big cities, but our Army personnel are not coming from big cities only. They are coming from rural areas too, where the inter-mingling, which is expected, is still not there,” he said.

“They are already there in education and law, so the other field we have identified for them is information warfare and psychological warfare. We are also considering the accounting field where women can be inducted,” he said.

“Women officers are being inducted into all the three services. But what we have to decide is whether some of them can be given permanent commissions,” Gen Rawat said.

File photo for representation.

Jammu, December 26

A 55-year-old civilian was killed on Wednesday in unprovoked firing by Pakistani troops along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri district, a defence spokesman said.

“At around 1200 hours, Pakistan Army initiated unprovoked firing in Noushera sector, resulting in fatal casualty of one civilian, Bodhraj, a resident of Deeing village,” Jammu-based Army PRO Lt Col Devender Anand said.

He said Bodhraj sustained injuries in the firing and was immediately evacuated by the Army for medical aid, but succumbed to injuries.

“Indian troops replied to the Pakistani belligerence in a befitting manner,” the officer said, adding that Army authorities have promised all possible assistance and help to the family of the deceased.

This is the second time in the past three days that Pakistani troops have resorted to unprovoked firing from across the border in Noushera sector.

On December 24, Pakistani troops targeted forward posts and villages in Keri, Lam, Pukharni and Peer Badaser areas of the sector for five hours from 9.30 am.

Although there was no casualty in the firing and shelling, local authorities had closed all schools within a five-km radius in the affected areas as a precautionary measure that day. — PTI

Washington, December 21

The US acceded to Pakistan’s demand to overlook its secretive nuclear weapons programme following the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in the late 1970s after Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping convinced Washington to support Islamabad for the “stability” in South Asia, according to latest declassified State Department documents.

The documents reveal that the then Pakistani dictator Gen Zia-ul Haq and Chinese Vice Premier Deng Xiaoping were successful in extracting this price from the US in lieu of Islamabad’s support to America against the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

Deng also convinced the US to start giving more military and financial aid to Pakistan, according to the US Foreign Relations 1977-1980 volume on Afghanistan.

The voluminous document indicates that both Zia and Deng successfully convinced the then Jimmy Carter administration that India under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi would be pro-Soviet.

“There are limits on our ability to aid Pakistan because of their nuclear explosive programme. Although we still object to their doing so, we will now set that aside for the time being, to facilitate strengthening Pakistan against potential Soviet action,” the then US Defence Secretary Harold Brown said in a January 8, 1980, meeting with Deng.

“Pakistan has its own arguments, i.e., India has exploded a nuclear device but the world has not seemed to complain about this. So now you have decided to put this aside and solve the question of military and economic aid to Pakistan. We applaud this decision,” said Deng, who later emerged as China’s top leader.

He also convinced the US to not equate India and Pakistan when it comes to giving aid. “Regarding India, we have always felt that the United States should try to cultivate good relations, and this has had a good effect. But India is not a stabilising factor. Perhaps you already know the general election results,” he said. He was referring to the then just-concluded parliamentary elections in which Indira Gandhi came back to power with a majority. Observing that Gandhi had got 70 per cent of the vote, Deng said it was very difficult to judge how India will go. — PTI

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, December 17

Days after civilian killings in south Kashmir’s Pulwama, the Army on Monday asked the troops to maintain a safe, secure and peaceful environment for the people of Kashmir.

The directions were issued by Northern Command chief Lt Gen Ranbir Singh during his interaction with field commanders in Kashmir.

“Lauding the excellent synergy among all security forces, he asked all ranks to maintain a safe, secure and peaceful environment for the ‘awaam’ of Kashmir,” said an Army spokesman quoting the Northern Command chief.

Earlier, General Ranbir arrived here to review security. He was briefed by Chinar Corps GOC Lt Gen AK Bhatt at Badami Bagh cantonment on the overall situation and major operational, informational, logistic and administrative aspects pertaining to the Corps.

They also visited the forward areas in the frontier districts of Kupwara and Baramulla, where the Northern Command chief was briefed by the commanders on ground on operational preparedness.

“During his interaction with the troops, General Ranbir lauded their professionalism, sharp vigil along the Line of Control and high morale and exhorted them to remain alert for any eventuality,” said the spokesman.

Later in the day, the Northern Command chief visited hinterland formations in south Kashmir and was briefed about the current situation and recent counter-terrorist operations. General Ranbir complimented the troops for eliminating the terrorist leadership from south Kashmir and dedication to duty.

Tehreek-e-Hurriyat leader held in Kishtwar

Doda: After a crackdown on terror activities, the police arrested an overground worker (OGW) in Kishtwar on Monday. Noor Mohammed, alias Fayaz Malik, of the Fiqsoo area in Doda was wanted in a militancy case in Kishtwar. He is a self-styled leader of the Tehreek-e-Hurriyat, Doda. Kishtwar SSP Rajinder Kumar Gupta said, “The OGW was active in the process of radicalising youth to join militancy. He had close links with Qamar-ul-Zaan, a terrorist recently arrested in UP, and local militant Usama-bin-Javed.” OC

Jammu, December 8

Pakistani troops on Saturday opened fire at forward posts along the Line of Control (LoC) in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir, a defence spokesman said.

The Pakistani troops targeted Indian posts at about 9 am, prompting strong and effective retaliation from the Indian Army, the spokesman said.

No casualty has been reported in the firing which was still continuing when the reports last came in. The latest violation comes two days after a BSF jawan was killed and another injured in Pakistani firing in the same sector on Thursday.

Pakistani troops also suffered several casualties in the retaliatory action following the killing of the BSF jawan, officials said. PTI

1. OPENING CEREMONY :: MILITARY FEST ::06 DEC2018 AT 10:00 A.M ALSO ARMED FORCES FLAG DAY
2. MILITARY LITERATURE FESTIVAL THE WORLD & WORDS OF WARRIORS
3. MILITARY LITERATURE FESTIVAL FROM WW-II TO INDO-PAK WARS, THREE CHIEFS HAVE DIVERSE LITERARY CHOICES
4. DATEWISE PROGRAMME : MILITARY FESTIVAL CHANDIGARH :2018
5. TOPICS AND PANNEL DISCUSSION SPEAKERS DURING MILITARY LITERATURE FEST-2018
6. WHEN SOLDIERS WIELD THE PEN BY LT GEN BALJIT SINGH (RETD)
7. STORIES ETCHED IN STONE AND STEEL :: WAR MEMORIALS
8. A LOST PLOT
9. COMIC TIMING
10. REMEMBERING HEROES OF THE GREAT WAR BY SQN LDR RANA TS CHHINA (RETD)
11. 1962 – A CASE OF CHINESE WHISPERS
12. THE ARMY’S ENGAGEMENT WITH SPORTS
13. UNIFORMLY HUMOROUS