Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, January 22

An 86-year-old ex-serviceman Lt Col Manmohan Singh (retd) can be spotted standing for four to five hours at Guru Gobind Singh Stadium daily as he handles about 2,600 youth rehearsing for the forthcoming Republic Day function.

Even when it was raining heavily this morning, the tough taskmaster ensured that at least some part of rehearsal could be conducted.

“I cannot just spare even a single day of practice at this stage. So, I ensured that all 1,500 students who are a part of the parade came and practised in the sheds,” he said.

His job just did not end there. Lt Col Manmohan Singh kept calling all school and college heads asking them to send children for the practice of cultural events under sheds at stadium.

As most tried to avoid sending children giving excuse that it was raining and attendance was less than 50 per cent, he still managed to persuade some and get some cultural performances practised in covered area even today.

The level of commitment of the officer can be seen from the fact that it is for the past consecutive 26 years that he has been supervising rehearsals for R-Day and the Independence Day at the stadium. Owing to his leadership, training skills and insistence of maintaining perfection in all programmes, the administration also entrusts him with organising Armed Forces Flag Day function.

He ensures that all children coming for the parade get two bananas and a kinoo as refreshment daily before they leave.

“After I make them practice their items again and again. But with me there for 10 days, I am sure that they also learn lessons on ethics of life and discipline. The rehearsal sessions with youth rejuvenates me too for the rest of the year,” he added.

Having opted for voluntary retirement in 1986-87, he was picked by the then local administration for the post of Deputy Director Local Bodies. Here too, he worked for 26 years till 2012 wherein he had imparted training to 55,000 youth at various camps, organised for free for entry into police, defence and paramilitary forces.

“While several hundred youth, who took training under me got jobs, 31 boys got entry into NDA and 11 girls got admission at Officers’ Training Academy. I can proudly recall that the Sainik Welfare teams from 17 states came to my office in those days to see the work I was engaged in,” he said.

Ravi S. Singh
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 24

The Left has announced an nine-day sit in protest that will unite various farm organisations and civil right groups to protest against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) months before the country holds general elections.

Organised under the banned ‘Unite India’, the left-led protest has identified 15 core issues that it will demand are included in the anti-BJP front for the upcoming election. The protest is scheduled to begin on January 30, and will overlap the last Budget Session under the current regime.

Budget session for a vote-on-account begins January 31. This will be an interim budget until the new government gets voted in.

General elections are due for April-May this year.

“All political parties except BJP has been invited to attend the agitation on its concluding day to express their views on the issues,” Hannan Molla, a seven-time MP and member of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)’s farmer wing All India Kisan Sabha(AIKS), said on Thursday.

Independent MLA from Gujarat Jignesh Mevani, and Satbir Singh, member of Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement for OROP Major General (retired)—which will also be part of the protest—said the incumbent Union government has disappointed youth and ex-servicemen.

“The government is promoting atrocities against the dalits and minorities,” Mevani said.

Unite India is an umbrella body powered by the AIKS and other Left-wing organisations. It was floated in July 2018 to launch a grassroots movement.

“As we approach the 2019  General Elections, citizens are stepping up to support an agenda focusing on critical issues in order to collectivity create an uplifting narrative that offers hope for better priorities and direction for the country,” Molla, a key leader of ‘Unite India’ said.

Issues of focus include matters affecting serving armed forces, ex-servicemen, war widows and disabled soldiers, dalits and Advisis, agrarian and rural distress, and hate crimes.

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 13

An indigenous pilot display unit (PDU) has been developed for the IAF’s indigenously upgraded Hawk-i advanced jet trainer by the Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIO) here. The instrument, akin to a head-up display unit, is installed above the cockpit’s instrument panel with its screen at the pilot’s eye level and superimposes vital flight and mission parameters on the pilot’s line of vision of the outside world.

The Mission Combat Systems Research and Design Centre of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Bangalore, had awarded this project to CSIO and the first prototype has been fabricated. It is expected to take to the skies in a few weeks.

The British Hawk entered IAF service in 2008, with 24 aircraft received in fly-away condition and 42 being assembled by HAL. Another 57 Hawks, with some going to the Navy, were to be licence-produced by HAL along with upgrade of the fleet and incorporation of some Indian made components and sub-systems. The upgraded aircraft have been christened as Hawk-i.

The PDU provides a comprehensive flight-symbology display along with ambient vision under all-weather conditions. It displays navigation inputs like altitude, airspeed, angle of attack and artificial horizon, take off and landing data as well as weapon aiming and delivery cues. Since the pilot does not have to change his line of sight or visual accommodation by peering repeatedly at his instrument panel inside the cockpit, the PDU reduces his workload and reaction time, while enabling him to take split-second decisions and enhancing his weapon aiming capability.

It is smaller and lighter than earlier head-up displays developed by CSIO for the light combat aircraft, HAL trainer aircraft and Jaguar. All modern combat aircraft as well as some transport aircraft are equipped with head-up displays.

“The PDU can be operated in different modes that can be selected from a multifunction up-front control panel. In the ‘raster’ mode it displays the real time infrared camera video to the pilot for target seeking, while in the mixed mode, raster video is combined with other information for weapon aiming and target locking along with other flight critical information to the pilot,” Vipan Kumar, principal scientist overseeing the project, said.

“In the eventuality of mission computer failure, PDU has dedicated information which can be displayed to the pilot in stand-by-sight mode,” he said.

File photo for representation only.

Jammu, January 11

An Army porter was killed on Friday when Pakistani troops continued ceasefire violations for the fourth consecutive day along the LoC in Rajouri and Poonch districts of Jammu and Kashmir, prompting the Indian Army to retaliate, officials said.

Army porter Hemraj was critically injured when Pakistani troops resorted to unprovoked firing in Sunderbani sector of Rajouri district, PRO Defence Lt Col Devender Anand said.

He was provided immediate resuscitation and medical aid, but he succumbed to the gunshot wounds, he said.

The Army will provide all possible assistance to the family of martyred porter, the PRO said.

Pakistan troops also resorted to firing and shelling along the LoC in forward areas of the Poonch district, the officials said.

Indian troops guarding the borderline retaliated strongly, resulting in exchange of firing on the both sides, they said.

The year 2018 had witnessed 2,936 ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the Indo-Pak border, the highest in the last 15 years.

The continuous shelling and firing by Pakistan targeting villages has set in fear psychosis among the border dwellers, the officials said.

Pakistani troops resorted to firing and shelling along the LoC in Poonch eight out of ten days of this month, they said.

On Thursday, Pakistan resorted to firing and shelling in two sectors of Rajouri and Poonch resulting in injuries to an Army major and a BSF jawan in the Tarkundi forward area of Balakote sector.

On Wednesday, Pakistan troops resorted to firing and shelling in the Kalal forward area in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district and small arms and heavy caliber weapons besides shelling in Poonch sector, the officials said.

Despite repeated calls for restraint and adherence to the ceasefire understanding of 2003 for maintaining peace and tranquility at Indo-Pak flag meetings, Pakistan continues to violate the ceasefire, they said.

General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command, Lt Gen Ranbir Singh had on Monday visited forward areas along the LoC and reviewed security situation of Jammu and Rajouri districts.

Lt Gen Singh accompanied by the White Knight Corps commander Lt Gen Paramjit Singh also visited forward posts of Rajouri and Akhnoor sectors to review the operational preparedness and the prevailing security situation, the officials said. — PTI

Mr Bhat is joining as the military secretary at the army headquarters in New Delhi. He has completed his tenure,” a source in the army told Greater Kashmir

The army on Tuesday said that the outgoing GoC 15 Corps AK Bhat is joining as military secretary army headquarters in New Delhi in February.

“Mr Bhat is joining as the military secretary at the army headquarters in New Delhi. He has completed his tenure,” a source in the army told Greater Kashmir.

He said the newspaper reports about Bhat being “recalled” were not true and that he is joining the army headquarters as the military secretary.

The army headquarters have cleared the name of Lt. Gen KJS Dhilon as the new GoC of 15 Corps and he will join in the first week of Febrauary.

A serving woman army officer Lieutenant Colonel Annu Dogra has moved the Supreme Court against the Ministry of Defence and her Superior Officer Brigadier Sandeep Kumar for being deprived of her fundamental right to tend to her infant child.

In a 20-page petition, Lt Col Dogra states that she is being moved from her present place of posting for duties to different locations “which do not even provide the basic facility of a creche.”

The mother of a two-year-old, Lt Col Dogra is currently posted at the Jodhpur Base of the Indian Army along with her husband who is also a serving Army Officer. She is a part of the Judge Advocate Generals Department of the Indian Army performing the duties of Officer In-charge Legal Cell (Armed Forces Tribunal). Her husband is posted as the Deputy Judge Advocate General at the same headquarters.

In November, 2018, Lt Col Dogra was assigned to perform her duty as a Judge Advocate at the Regimental Centre at Kamptee, Nagpur in an on-going court-martial. She subsequently went on to visit Kamptee from December 5 to December 18 during which her husband had to take leave from work to take care of their young child. On her return, she was asked to report back to Kamptee once again.

In her petition, Dogra alleges that being deployed for a court-martial is accompanied with an “uncertainty of conclusions”, by which she means that it can’t be predicted whether the court-martial will last “two days, a week or six months”. In essence, a court-martial works similar to a case pending in a court – which requires a detailed hearing on both sides and deep consideration of facts at hand and the issues in law – something that can require her to stay away from her child for an indefinite period of time.

READ | CRPF Jawans Take Up Chalks And Pens To Teach In A School Amid Jharkhand Para Teachers’ Strike

Dogra goes on to allege that most of these postings do not provide the basic facility of a creche for women officers who are compelled to travel with young infants in the performance of their duties as serving army officers. She relies on the National Policy for Children issued by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in 2013. The Policy, says Dogra, safeguards the interest and fundamental rights of the children along with their mothers irrespective of the fact that they may be a member of the Indian Armed Forces.

After she had received the second order, Lt Col Dogra made a verbal request to her superior officer to reconsider the same considering that she would have had to take her two-year-old child with her to Kamptee, about 1600 kms away from Jodhpur, without any direct connectivity by air. She made repeated such requests before her Superior Officers asking them to reconsider the order. She was forced to knock on the doors of the top court when all of her requests were rejected. She goes on to allege that there has been an “abuse of power” by her Superior Officers due to which they have been “highly inconsiderate” with her requests.

Dogra’s petition before the Supreme Court, though challenges a specific order but also raises the pertinent issue of working mothers, especially in the Indian Army. With lack of basic facilities, which directly violates the central government policy, women officers in the Indian Army are rendered incapable of performing their duties to the best of their capabilities and often even forced to choose between professional and personal obligations. Dogra asks the Supreme Court to issue directions to the Ministry of Defence asking them to implement the National Policy for Children and provide necessary security and protection for children of women officers, like her.

New Delhi, January 6

With US troops’ withdrawal from Afghanistan imminent, what is the possible security scenario that South Asia faces? Will India and Pakistan give peace a serious chance this year? And will a second round of Trump-Kim meeting possible in the next few months lead to significant steps towards the Korean peninsular denuclearisation?  Smita Sharma spoke to Dr Moeed Yusuf, Associate Vice President at the United States Institute of Peace in DC and a Pakistani scholar, during his recent India visit.

His latest book ‘Brokering Peace in Nuclear Environments: US Crisis Management in South Asia’ delves into brokered bargaining and third party mediation in the regional Indo-Pak nuclear crisis.

How do you assess news reports about Trump’s plans of troop withdrawal from Afghanistan?

I am not surprised that the White House has denied plans to pull out half of the US troops present in Afghanistan. I don’t think there was ever a cooked plan to this effect. The media hype may have taken this too far.

The so-called announcement though could have either effect: It could send a signal to the Taliban that the US interest in Afghanistan is waning and that they could thus wait the US out rather than negotiating; or the US and others trying to convince the Taliban to end the war could argue that they have publicly indicated their willingness to ultimately leave Afghanistan — this being the principal Taliban demand — and now Taliban need to reciprocate by stating their willingness to agree to a ceasefire to show their sincerity to the process. 

If the withdrawal happens, what will be the major impact in the region?

The conventional wisdom remains that a precipitous US withdrawal risks causing chaos in Afghanistan and undoing some of the gains achieved in the past 17 years. It may also thrust Afghanistan into a free-for-all proxy war, with regional actors jumping in to back their preferred factions. At the same time, sooner or later, a US draw down will take place. President Trump has made this clear. So the Afghan government, the US, and regional actors must work together to agree on a formula for ensuring Afghanistan’s long term security.

Do India and Pak have a serious shot at recalibrating ties post 2019 elections? Will the Pak army back peace overtures, if any, by Imran Khan? 

I will be shocked if India and Pakistan do not make serious efforts to restart some kind of dialogue after May 2019. Pakistan — this includes the civilian and military leadership — has made its desire to engage in a dialogue explicit and my recent discussions in India confirm that India’s reluctance is largely a function of the May 2019 elections.

Otherwise, I think both sides are clear that stalling all communication is not a viable strategy. Yes, it is another question whether they’ll be able to sustain a conversation. I remain pessimistic given the mutual mistrust in the relationship and the ease with which any of the spoilers can derail the process.

Whether nuclear capability is deterrence or not has been long debated. You have discussed the role of third party (US) mediation in Indo-Pak nuclear crisis in your new book. What is the important takeaway? 

Foremost, that the US and other strong third parties play a central role as mediators to de-escalate tensions between India and Pakistan in a crisis situation.These two nuclear powers  have become more, not less, dependent on third parties to bail them out during crises since their nuclear tests.

To be sure, this isn’t to say that there was or is going to be nuclear war in South Asia sans third party mediation. But evidence is unequivocal that we haven’t witnessed purely bilateral crisis management in South Asia as we did during major Cold War crises when the US and Soviet Union were at loggerheads. In some cases, India has been keener than Pakistan to use third party channels to pressure Pakistan to achieve crisis goals.

Vladimir Putin recently said the world is underestimating the probability of a nuclear war. Your views specially in the South Asian context.

The probability of deliberate nuclear launch by either side remains extremely low. Equally, I don’t think either side would go out of their way to test the other’s red lines. As I report in my book, I didn’t pick up anything during the Kargil, 2001-02, and Mumbai 2008 crises that pointed to irrational behaviour on either side. And yet, in no nuclear environment can you ever rule out the possibility of inadvertent or accidental nuclear launch in the fog of war. This risk can’t be ignored — it exists in every nuclear environment and more so in contexts prone to crises.

What is your take on what to expect from the next round of Trump-Kim meeting likely to be held soon on the peninsular nuclear crisis. 

The obvious benefit of the thaw between the two is that the threat of imminent war we witnessed in 2017 has disappeared. But I also don’t expect immediate de-nuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and therefore, I would predict no major breakthroughs. This is an extremely complicated equation and promises to remain so.

Randeep Singh Surjewala addresses a press conference at Parliament House in New Delhi on Wednesday. Tribune photo: Manas Ranjan Bhui

New Delhi, January 2

The Congress on Wednesday demanded answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s purported claim that he had a file on Rafale “lying in his bedroom” and asked if this was the reason why a joint parliamentary committee probe was not being ordered.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala came out with a conversation purportedly between Goa minister Vishwajit Rane and another person.

Rane purportedly can be heard saying that during a Goa Cabinet meeting last week, Parrikar stated he had an entire file and all documents relating to the Rafale deal lying in his bedroom, Surjewala claimed, playing the conversation for the media outside Parliament.

He quoted Rane as saying, “The Chief Minister made a very interesting statement, that I have all the information of Rafale in my bedroom…that’s means he is holding them to ransom. He said it is in my bedroom here only in my flat, each and every document on Rafale.”

However, there was no confirmation on whether it was the voice of Rane in the audio. The identity of the other person was also not ascertained.

The BJP has alleged that the Congress is only “peddling lies” on the Rafale issue.

“Now it is clear that the ‘chowkidaar is chor’ (the watchman is a thief),” Surjewala told reporters in an apparent reference to Modi.

“Now the Prime Minister should answer. The country is demanding answers as to what secrets in the Rafale ‘scam’ are lying inside Manohar Parrikar’s flat and bedroom,” he claimed, asking why is the ‘chowkidaar’ fearing Parrikar.

“Now, the Prime Minister has to answer. He only does captive interviews and is not used to answering questions from the media. What is the hitch in making public all the documents,” he asked.

Surjewala claimed the skeletons were tumbling out of the Rafale scam cupboard.

“New evidence busts ‘chowkidar’s’ worst kept secrets. What is Modi government hiding… Is this the reason why a JPC probe is not being ordered,” he asked.

Training his guns on Modi, Surjewala said, “This is a personal charge against you”.

“There was corruption and wrongdoing in the Rafale scam and it is all recorded in the files. Those files are with Mr Parrikar. Why are they being hidden? If Mr Modi has nothing to hide, then why is Mr Parrikar keeping those files in his bedroom and threatening everybody that nobody can do anything against him, for he has the Rafale files,” he alleged.

“Because, secrets are all recorded in the files and the day those files are out, as stated by and threatened by Parrikar himself, then what we have always said will be proved. That Rafale is the biggest scam of India and the person accountable for it is the Prime Minister himself,” he told reporters.

He said it has now become necessary that the files of Rafale with Parrikar need to come out in public domain.

Audio clip ‘doctored’, says Rane

Terming the audio clip, cited by the Congress to attack the Centre on the Rafale issue, as “doctored”, Goa minister Rane told BJP president Amit Shah on Wednesday that he has asked the state government to order an inquiry into the matter.

In a letter to Shah, Rane said he never had any conversation with anyone on the Rafale issue.

According to BJP sources, Rane has said that “I have also sent a letter to Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar asking for an immediate police inquiry and criminal investigation to expose the mischievous elements.”

In his letter to Shah, Rane also said,”…this is a doctored audio and have never had any discussion with this regard on this subject with anyone.”

Desperate bid to fabricate facts: Parrikar

Goa Chief Minister Parrikar on Wednesday termed the audio clip a desperate attempt to fabricate facts after the Supreme Court exposed the “lies” of the Opposition party.

Parrikar’s comments came hours after the Congress quoted him as saying that he had a file on Rafale deal “lying in his bedroom”.PTI

Cong releases purported audio clip; Jaitley hits back with Bond dialogue

New Delhi, January 2

The Congress Wednesday released a purported audio clip of a Goa minister on Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar’s alleged claim of a file on Rafale deal “lying in his bedroom”, igniting a fresh political firestorm as Finance Minister Arun Jaitley crossed swords with its chief Rahul Gandhi.

Jaitley also whipped out a dialogue from a James Bond film to accuse Gandhi of peddling “lies” and “falsehood” in the Lok Sabha after the Congress president made an attempt to play the unverified audio tape purportedly of the minister Vishwajit Rane telling an unidentified person regarding the alleged claim by Parrikar at a Cabinet meeting last week.

Launching a blistering attack on the government, Gandhi targeted Narendra Modi saying he “does not have guts” to face questions in Parliament. He also alleged that Parrikar is “blackmailing” the  prime minister.

The Congress earlier in the day demanded answers from Modi on Parrikar’s purported claim and asked if this was the reason why a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe was not being ordered.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala came out with a conversation purportedly between Rane and another person regarding the alleged claim by Parrikar.

Rane purportedly can be heard saying that during a Goa cabinet meeting last week Parrikar allegedly stated he had an entire file and all documents relating to the Rafale deal lying in his bedroom, Surjewala claimed, playing the conversation for the media outside Parliament.

He quoted Rane as saying, “The chief minister made a very interesting statement, that I have all the information of Rafale in my bedroom….that means he is holding them to ransom. He said it is in my bedroom here only in my flat, each and every document on Rafale.”

However, there was no confirmation on whether it was the voice of Rane in the audio.

Parrikar on his part termed the audio clip as a desperate attempt to fabricate facts after the Supreme Court exposed the “lies” of the opposition party.

No such discussion as cited in the audio clip ever came up during the Cabinet or any other meeting, said Parrikar, who was the defence minister when India and France signed a deal for the purchase of fighter aircraft from France.

Rane termed the audio clip as “doctored” and fake and told BJP president Amit Shah that he has asked the state government to order an inquiry into the matter.

Later speaking to reporters, Rahul Gandhi claimed the tape  is “authentic” and that there might be many such “tapes”.

“The Goa minister is saying clearly that Parrikar ji said in a cabinet meeting that he has a complete file on Rafale deal with all details and therefore, he can’t be disturbed. There may be other such audio tapes,” said the Congress president.

“What Parrikar is essentially doing is threatening the prime minister and blackmailing him in a way,” Gandhi alleged. “We have been raising this for a long time. Question is what information is there in Parrikar’s bedroom and what files are there and what could be the impact on Narendra Modi.”

As tempers ran high in the Lok Sabha, Jaitley said the tape is “false and fabricated”, asking the Congress president if he can authenticate it. He also asserted that Gandhi may have to face privilege motion and even expulsion in case the tape turns out to be fabricated.

Following Gandhi’s hard-hitting attack on the government, Jaitley launched a counter-offensive as he referred to alleged defence scams during the Congress rule and said  “conspirators” of past defence scams had the “audacity” to target the Modi dispensation.

He also ruled out a JPC probe — a demand made by most opposition leaders, including Gandhi — saying there was no need for it as the Supreme Court has already satisfied its “conscience” on the issue.

Targeting Gandhi, the BJP leader said he would have played in the lap of ‘Q’, an apparent reference to Ottavio Quattrocchi- allegedly invoved in the Bofors case.

Attacking the Congress president, he said “There are some people who have a natural dislike for truth. Every word spoken for the last six months on this subject, including in this House (by them) are false….He has a legacy of speaking falsehood”.

The House witnessed high drama after Gandhi sought the Speaker’s permission to play the purported audio tape of Rane.

Amid an uproar, which caused brief adjournment of the House proceedings, Gandhi said he would not play it and authenticate it, prompting Jaitley to say that he was “scared” as he knew it was false.

“This man lies and lies repeatedly,” Jaitley said.

Speaker Sumitra Mahajan also disallowed Gandhi’s request to play the clip.

Gandhi claimed BJP members were “terrified” of the clip Rane has already termed the tape “fabricated”, Jaitley said.

In his speech, Gandhi referred to Modi’s comments in an interview telecast yesterday that no personal allegation was levelled against him in the matter and said this was not true as the “entire nation” is asking him a direct question on the contract for purchase of fighter aircraft.

“He (Modi) spoke for 90 minutes in a staged interview but still did not answer questions on the Rafale issue… He does not have the guts to come to Parliament and confront questions (on Rafale) and hides in his room.”

“We demand a JPC probe into matter. There is no reason for BJP leaders to feel afraid. The country will get to know that Modi put Rs 30,000 crore in the pockets of ‘double A’. The contract was snatched from HAL (a government-run unit),” Gandhi said, alleging corruption in the contract.

‘Double A’ was an apparent reference to Anil Ambani, whom Gandhi repeatedly referred to in his speech before Mahajan asked him not to name him as he is not a member of the House.

Hitting back, Jaitley said, “It is a tragedy that the grand old party which was headed by the legends in the past is now headed by a gentleman who doesn’t have basic understanding of combat aircraft.” He then raked up the Bofors, AgustaWestland and National Herald cases. “If there was one case”, he said, “I may have given that family [the Nehru-Gandhi family] the benefit of doubt”.

“Three is a bit two much,” Jaitley and brought up a quote from a James Bond film.

“I am sure Shri Rahul Gandhi, in his earlier days, was seeing the James Bond films,” Jaitley said. “James Bond has said: If it is once, it’s a happenstance, it can happen. If it is twice, it is a coincidence. And if it is thrice, it’s a conspiracy-Congress president is doing the same.” Saugata Roy of the Trinamool Congress was quick to take a dig at Jaitley for what he said was wrongly quoting Bond, saying the movie’s hero had said if it happens for the third time, then it is enemy action, and not conspiracy as the senior BJP leader claimed.

“Jaitley is losing his touch and his memory is failing him,” Roy said. – PTI

Let’s have one-on-one debate over Rafale, Rahul dares PM

Aditi Tandon
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, January 2

Notwithstanding the government’s defence of the Rafale deal in the Lok Sabha today, Congress president Rahul Gandhi appeared in no mood to relent and dared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a 20-minute debate on the issue.

Moments after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley accused Gandhi of “lying on Rafale”, Gandhi repeated his “watchman-is-a-thief” charge on the PM challenging the latter to a debate, asking why a Rs 526 crore aircraft’s was “inflated” to Rs 1,600 crore aircraft; why HAL was “shunted out” of the Indo-French Government to Government deal and why private industrialist Anil Ambani, with “zero” experience of aircraft manufacturing, was patronized?

Gandhi, flanked by Congress media chief Randeep Surjewala at AICC headquarters here, cited a taped conversation of a Goa minister today to say, “Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar told his Cabinet he has Rafale papers in his bedroom. The Goa CM is blackmailing the PM with this information and is saying no one can touch him. What information does he have on Rafale? And who knows there could be more tapes,” Gandhi said, indicating he was privy to more “incriminating” tapes on the deal’s details.

The claim followed Jaitley’s accusation in the Lok Sabha today that the Congress is “manufacturing” tapes in their “desperation to paint a clean government black”. Asked why he didn’t play the tape in the Lok Sabha today, Gandhi said “because the Speaker Sabha didn’t give permission”.

With Jaitley attacking Gandhi and his family personally, the Congress chief repeated all his old charges steering clear of the Government’s defence that the Apex Court had dismissed all anti-Rafale petitions after “satisfying its conscience on pricing”.

“The SC has said it can’t get into pricing. We are asking why the PM is hiding behind the FM and why is the Defence Minister not answering the debate on Rafale. The PM does not have the courage to face the House. But the truth will reveal itself,” Gandhi said making light of Jaitley’s serial jibes on him in LS today including “Mr Gandhi’s lessons must begin from A, B,C; Mr Gandhi doesn’t even know kindergarten arithmetic and some people have a natural dislike for truth”.

Rahul’s reply to Jaitley was this: “He said the Rafale deal is worth Rs 59000 crore. Divide Rs 59000 crore with 36. What price do you get? Their defence is hollow.”

Tweets ‘open book exam’ 

Tomorrow, the PM faces an Open Book #RafaleDeal Exam in Parliament. Here are the exam questions in advance: Q1. Why 36 aircraft, instead of the 126 the IAF needed? Q2. Why 1,600 Cr instead of 560 Cr per aircraft. Q3. Why AA instead of HAL? Will he show up? Or send a proxy? — Rahul Gandhi, Congress Chief

Congress MPs fly paper jets in Lok Sabha

• UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Wednesday surprised all by egging on Congress MPs to fly paper jets across the Lok Sabha as Finance Minister Arun Jaitley led the government’s defence of the Rafale aircraft purchase
• With Jaitley tearing into the Gandhi family alleging its role in Bofors and AgustaWestland scams, a visibly agitated Gandhi tore papers from the LS question and business lists to pass them to party MPs who made paper jets from them

It is a travesty of India’s intellect, academic as well as military, that solutions to problems Indian are, more often than not, sought on the basis of western philosophies and thought. Indian military analysts rely more on Sun Tzu or Clausewitz and Mahan with little thought to Chanakya’s Arthashasrtra, Shivaji’s strategy against vastly stronger Mughals or Kanhoji Angre’s sea battles against the British, Dutch and the Portuguese.

Our study of WWII, Vietnam war, in fact all recent American and Israeli wars, is deeper and wider than that of Indian wars, including those fought since Independence. The fundamental reason for this lacuna is our reluctance to find fault with ourselves and a propensity for finding scapegoats for own shortcomings, on one hand; and on the other, disdain for our power of thinking against the forcefully propagated western thought.

It is with this background that this article argues against the Indian Army’s and Indian Navy’s incessant clamouring for having a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and Integrated Operational Commands. The article also aims to trash the army’s implied claim that air power would be utilised more effectively were it integrated into the existing operational army commands.

CHAIRMAN CHIEFS OF STAFF COMMITTEE vs. CHAIRMAN JOINT CHIEFS OF STAFF

The Indian ‘Chiefs of Staff Committee’ (COSC) is in reality a Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, for it does comprise of all the chiefs of staff as does the American Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), except that the latter has an additional member, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, a combat arm which the Indian military does not have. Also, while the US JCS is headed by an independent chairman, who could be from any of the four arms, the COSC is chaired by one of its members; though, by convention, by the senior-most chief, government could well appoint any member as the chairman. To assist the chairman COSC in his functioning, he has an independent personal staff as well as several joint committees that are formed by staff from the three service headquarters (HQ). So the committee is as well equipped as it needs to be to consider and formulate war strategies. Having an independent arbiter at the apex, as does the US JCS, whom the Indian army and the navy want to ape, questions, so to speak, the very integrity, national loyalty, nonpartisan ethos, rational thinking of the three “wise men”. If indeed there is a need to doubt a service chief’s capability to put the country before his own service, then how does an independent chairman, but again from one of the services, suddenly acquire this nonpartisan quality? Are we forgetting a hallowed military axiom, faith begets faith, doubt leads to disintegration? Organisations do not bring about dependable solutions; it’s people who do! The questions to ask here are: not which sort of organisation will get us the right answer, but how to make existing organisations function as they ought; how do we get ourselves to have inter-service faith; how do we inculcate the confidence to bare open our inadequacies among ourselves; how do we air our doubts; how do we ask for each other’s help without false pretences. We are playing too much hide and seek within ourselves, and then when the chips are down, panic-stricken holler for help!! If we stop posing falsely with each other, confide with confidence, learn to accept own inadequacies and inabilities and ask for solutions and/or assistance from our sister services before the chips are down, we will save ourselves, not only a red-face, but an operational embarrassment.

Having the three service chiefs function equally as a committee has several advantages: An independent chairman “confronting” the government singly may not prove to be as effective in a crunch situation, as would be a committee of three. There have been instances of the US CJCS being “bullied” by his president, secretary of defence and by the cabinet. A quartet (or a trio in our case) would have had/will have a stronger chance of standing its ground. Before finally giving the “ok” to the army chief’s request for air support in the Kargil Operations, the prime minister, along with rest of the CCS (Cabinet Committee on Security), would have preferred the army to manage on its own the eviction of Pakistani intruders; but when the air chief intervened to say air support to the army was inescapable and that the air force was prepared to do so immediately, the PM accepted the request, though somewhat reluctantly.

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But there is a flip-side too. The COSC/JCS may have strong difference(s) within itself on professional grounds. It would be a folly to leave the arbitration always with the chairman. A political intervention could become inevitable under certain circumstances; a strongly dissenting chief could be over-ruled by the chairman without the knowledge of the CCS/PM. Such a situation can have serious consequences. Such a situation was in the offing during the Kargil operations. Army HQ wanted Air HQ to provide armed helicopter support without – not only not getting government clearance, but even without keeping the government informed. It had become impossible to persuade Army HQ to understand that given the high terrain, lack of vegetation and the exceedingly good visibility, mere helicopter operations would be suicidal; also, before commencing air operations, it was axiomatic that the air force be prepared for sudden escalation. We had to take cognizance of our 1965 experience: we had used the out-dated vampires against the Pakistani armoured offensive in the Chhamb-Jaurian sector without preparing ourselves for escalation. The inevitable had happened: the Vampires were shot out of the sky and the PAF counter-air attacks on our airfields destroyed several aircraft on ground. Our air support in the Kargil operations did not invite retaliation by the PAF because they realised that it would be a jump from the frying-pan in to the fire! Insistence on using fighters saved us many helicopter casualties. A CJCS could well have over-ruled a dissenting air chief, with disastrous consequences.

A popular misconception doing the rounds among veterans is that the defence secretary (defsecy) lords over the service chiefs. Firstly, such a situation can occur only if a service HQ/chief allows this to happen. Scrutinising service proposals is a legitimate function of MOD; defsecy does this on behalf of the RM (Defence Minister); he has no authority of his own. If there is adequate substance in a service proposal, MOD cannot deny it, though they may delay it. But if the arm-chair free-advising lot think that introduction of the CJCS will remove this “over-lording”, they are sadly mistaken: the defsecy will be upgraded to prindefsecy (principal defence secretary) and there will be a detrimental change in MOD-service HQ working relationship: the service chiefs will not only not get to see the RM, but they will also not be able to approach the prindefsecy!!

Before considering establishment of a CJCS, a comprehensive analysis ought to be done on the benefits or otherwise accrued from the establishment of the Integrated Defence Staff HQ. It is the author’s view that it may not have accrued the benefits that were envisaged, but may have further complicated the interactions between Services’ Headquarters and Ministry of Defence (MOD); also, formulation of joint plans could have become more tenuous. There is also a need to consider the likely increases in defence budget and non-operational manpower. In short: stop fiddling around unnecessarily, function within the existing system and make it work.

INTEGRATED THEATRE COMMANDS

Before man took to the skies, command of territories was dictated by armies and the navies ruled over the seas. But once the warrior got a bird’s eye view, he realised soon enough that if one dominated the skies, land was his to occupy and foresaw that if he soared like the albatross and had the flight endurance of a bar-tailed godwit that flies non-stop from Alaska to New Zealands, he could cross the oceans without a ship. While this gave a warrior without inhibitions and a weighing-down prefix of land or sea, an outlook extending well beyond the horizon, the traditional soldier and sea-warrior saw this as a diminishment of his domain. Just like the Jurassic period terrestrial Tyrannosaurus and the marine Elasmosaurus would not have countenanced the Pterosaurs dominating them from the sky, the modern day armies and navies find it difficult to accept air forces usurping their domains; while the aforesaid words are more in jest, the reality is that the aerial reach and destructive power of air forces could be overwhelmingly greater than that of land or marine forces. While quite appreciative of this, armies and navies would rather have this power under their control, than let the air force take the dominating role.

Even the US military have a difficulty in managing their strength within their allotted budget, though their monetary largesse, as a percentage of the GDP, is more than double that of India and in absolute terms, several times higher; yet India’s difficulty in this determination is many times that of the US. It is a fundamental maxim that one needs to cut his coat according to his cloth. When there is but one piece of cloth and three coats to cut, determining the size of the coats is difficult, but very crucial.

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The difficult task of determining the structures and strengths of our military arms could be less complicated, were we to unequivocally state in the preamble to the joint doctrine the prioritisation of our security concerns and gave a broad outline of how we intend to counter them. There should be little debate before concluding that there are two top, uncontested issues: China’s belligerent claim on Indian territory and Pakistan’s incessant claim to Kashmir. How do we prevent Pakistan from encroaching further in to Kashmir and then politically reclaiming POK/militarily evicting Pakistan forces from POK (Pakistan Occupied Kashmir).

In the short term, how do we continue to thwart China’s nibbling our territory; in the long-term, can we contemplate freeing our Chinese-occupied territories? A dispassionate, objective computer-managed war-gaming analysis should give us a fair verdict on our required military strategy and structure. This author’s gut-feeling is that the IAF will have the most crucial role to play in both the scenarios. The size of its “coat” will have to increase substantially, and it would have to be regularly moved from theatre-to-theatre and back. Giving/allotting a fixed air force to any command would be an impossibility, more so if India is to envision a two-front conflict. Thus the concept of an integrated command has no validity when addressing only homeland security. Well in to the future, when India’s influence and trade grow to global proportions, we could contemplate highly mobile integrated task forces; until then protect your own territory(ies), for which we do not require integrated commands.

Despite the above argument against creating integrated home-based commands, should the army continue its clamour for integrated commands, army commanders need to accept that air force commanders are equally, if not more so, fit to head these unnecessary formations. Aerial warfare sophistication is increasing exponentially, and army commanders, who are already hard put to comprehend use of air power, will be even more disadvantaged. It is for this reason that Army is so reluctant to share its in-house studies and reports. Ever ready to trash air support in operations, their actual analytical reports are kept under wraps. The Kargil war report was presented to the RM with much fanfare, but Air HQ was neither requested to participate in its preparation, nor given a copy for its knowledge, if not critique. Air HQ is still to get a whiff of it, despite repeated requests over the years.

IAF has been more successful than most air forces in thwarting armies’ preoccupation with their addiction to have air forces under their grip. Recent writings by PAF veterans are a testimony to their unhappiness to Pakistan Army’s dominance over them. When this author (the first serving chief to do so) visited China, the PLAAF (Chinese AF) chief was ever so keen to know how the IAF does not operate under the supremacy of the army, a suffocating experience for them, which inhibited their balanced growth, training and strategic orientation. Can one imagine a PLAAF chief briefing his IAF counterpart how to “manage” the army commander at Chengdu, in command of the Tibet military region? Well, that’s exactly what happened nearly two decades ago! He was keen to have his delegations visit IAF’s selection centres and training institutions. A PLAAF delegation did visit the AF selection centre at Mysore, but it was not considered appropriate to give them access to our training institutions.

CONCLUSION

It is time that Indian military commanders learnt to trust their own experiences more than those of foreign military commanders. We should have gained sufficient confidence to admit mistakes, wrong decisions, give credit where it is due and not seek it for self-glory. We have to understand there is no single-service operation. Even if there is no actual participation by a service, it needs to evaluate whether it could have chipped-in with advice or actual support. The military must understand that an operation/a failure/a faux pas, howsoever insignificant must be revealed to government; we cannot be disdainful that “these civilians” can never understand; it is our job to make them understand. Let us not fight for self-glory or accruing power. If our motto truly is SERVICE BEFORE SELF, then the motto of even of greater and higher significance has to be NATION BEFORE OWN SERVICE! If we can follow that creed, we will accept that there is neither the need for Chairman Joint Chiefs of Defence Staff, nor the need for Integrated Theatre Commands in the existing Indian scenario.

– The author spearheaded the IAF during the 1999 Kargil War