Army and Defence

Unease, lack of communication or coordination or hostility are not the terms one associates with the relations between the Government and the Indian Army. But, unfortunately, the unraveling of events in the last few days suggest the relations between the Army and the government are in tumultuous waters.

Earlier last week, General VK Singh alleged that in September,2010,  he was offered a bribe of Rs 14 crore to clear purchase of sub-standard trucks from a company called Tatra. The offer was allegedly made by a retired senior army officer Lt. Gen. Tejinder Singh.

Certainly this came as the most shocking remark with regard to the armed forces.

On being asked what action did he take against the man who offered him bribe, General VK Singh said he was too shocked and perplexed and for some moments could not grasp what had happened. Later he apprised the defence minister of the incident. The defence minister held his head in his hands and expressed despair. But strangely no action was initiated against the man either by the minister or by the Army chief.

 As expected the issue rocked the nation sending shock-waves down the spine of people,  Parliament plunged into another pandemonium.
 In his explanation, defence minister AK Antony said that he had ordered a CBI probe into the matter, when asked why he did not order a probe earlier the minister came up with a feeble reply that he had not got any complaint in written format. The minister, trying to offsetting some burden off his head said he had asked the Army chief to take action against the person.  

Isn’t it shrugging off the responsibility and looking at the issue too casually?

However, the Army chief too doesn’t have a convincing answer as to why did he keep quiet for 18-long months? This has prompted some to connect the allegation with his age issue, terming it an act of revenge by General VK Singh as he had lost the age-row case in the Supreme Court in January this year.

 Meanwhile, the retired officer in question Lt. Gen. Tejinder Singh has refuted the charges and filed a defamation case against the Army chief and four others. Tatra, too, has sought government’s permission to sue the Army chief.  On the other hand the CBI probe in its initial stages has implied some irregularities in the procurement process of the trucks and company in question. The probe into Tatra-BEML deal is believed to have indicated that the vehicles procured might not be of genuine quality.  Following this  CBI has barred  NRI businessman Ravi Rishi from leaving the country. Mr. Ravi Rishi is the owner of Vectra group which is a majority stakes holder in Tatra.

As if it wasn’t enough to shake the belief and pride we repose in the armed forces, a ‘top-secret’ letter to the Prime Minister sent by the Army chief, was leaked.  The letter was a routine one detailing the armed forces status to the Centre.  But, the leaked letter’s content seemed to have more ammunition to damage the sense of security, power and trust a nation’s defence force is associated with.

The letter has exposed glaring shortcomings that our armed forces are grappling with. It says the army is woefully behind its modernization programme as the tardy pace of procurement of weapons have rendered the forces in an alarming condition.  The equipment could best be described as obsolete.

The letter was leaked at a time when New Delhi was busy in hosting the BRICS summit, causing all the more embarrassment mixed with tints of shame and insult to the government. One former chief of the army said that ‘Pakistan must be laughing all the way.’  Both the Army and the government have termed the leak of the letter an act of treason calling for exemplary punishment to the guilty. Amid the controversy, over hyped by a section of media, the government has certainly found itself in a bind.

Although, who leaked the letter is yet to be ascertained, there has been angry reactions from some of the politicians calling for dismissal of the Army Chief. Mr. AK Antony, however, has refused to dismiss General Singh saying ‘he (Antony) doesn’t want blood on his hands.’ The minister has tried to downplay the matter saying the armed forces enjoy full confidence of the government.  

Interestingly, all this has come to light at a time when India has become  the world’s largest weapons importer and the share of defence is on the rise in the Union Budgets over the years.

Since the Chief of Indian Army has written about the defence capabilities of the country in such a disdainful and pity manner and it’s all in open now, it’s incumbent upon the government to look for the tangible ways to address the issues raised.

However, people in the thick of the things say that the leaked letter says little new about the unsavoury conditions the defence forces are in. India’s strategic minds have been highlighting such inadequacies for years.  Most point out that the ministry and the officials are haunted by Bofors scam leading to inordinate delays in procurement of equipment. Some say the military’s own criteria for selecting the machines is arduous, as they have to go through numerous tests that consume substantial amount of time and still get stuck in limbo. So, there are a variety of reasons which have halted modernization of the armed forces.

One must understand the sensitivity of the matter and should refrain from making statements that may prove detrimental to the whole system. Of course, the letter points out deficiencies but that does not mean we are sitting ducks. In fact, our armed forces have shown remarkable valour and fortitude in safeguarding the porous borders despite all the adversities. The leaked letter has opened the much needed debate on our defence capabilities, which should be welcomed. Let’s hope it doesn’t end up in debates only.