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Although its lengthy article but I am sure you will like it..

A Must Read!!

ARMY CHIEF ROW WILL HISTORY REPEAT?

The real issue is the state and morale of the defense forces, not the leaked letter or pettypolitics. Fifty years ago, demoralization and neglect of the armed forces by Nehru and

Krishna Menon led to national humiliation in the 1962 China war.

Navaratna Rajaram

History does not repeat itself, it is famously said, but fools repeat history.

Philosopher-poet George Santayana put it slightly differently when he wrote Those

who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.

To those old enough to remember the events leading to Indias humiliation in 1962 and

both Manmohan Singh and A.K. Antony are old enoughthese famous quotes have a

familiar ring in our own time, especially in the controversy over the army chief GeneralV.K. Singhs difficulties with the government. More than fifty years ago, in 1959 to be

exact, General Thimmayya, the savior of Kashmir had handed his resignation to Prime

Minister Nehru protesting Defense Minister V.K. Krishna Menon's refusal to consider his

plans for preparing the Army for the forthcoming Sino-Indian conflict of 1962. Nehru

refused to accept it and persuaded him to withdraw his resignation. However, little

action was taken on Thimmayya's recommendations and he soon retired.

When Thimmayyas term as army chief ended, Nehru and Menon ignored Thimmayyas

recommendation to make General Thorat the army chief, preferring to appoint Pran

Nath Thapar. Where Thorat was known as a fighting general in the mould of Patton and

Rommel, Thapar was known to be politically well connected, related to Nehru bymarriage. (He was the uncle of historian Romila Thapar and TV journalist Karan Thapars

father.) Thanks to family connections, another political general Brij Mohan Kaul was

appointed commander of the Indian forces in the vital northeast sector. Kaul was to earn

eternal infamy by running away from the battlefield to get himself admitted to a Delhi

hospital when the Chinese attacked in 1962.

Nehru and Menon had no interest in national defense. They saw their positions not as

guardians of India but a platform for projecting and preaching their utopian ideas to the

world. Above all they, especially Nehru wanted to impress Westerners. In 1948, he

ignored Thimmayyas advice and took Kashmir to the United Nations. At the same time

he rejected General Cariappas advice to develop the infrastructure in the northeast. Helistened instesd to the advice of a British missionary called Verrier Elwin who said that

the northeast should be kept primitive to preserve tribal cultures. Elwin pretended to be

interested in tribal welfare, but it was only a pretext to exploit them, especially the

young girls. He married and divorced at least two tribal girls much younger than himself.

He was a Nehru favorite!

It is not widely known that India was offered a permanent seat in the Security Council

when the United Nations was formed. Nehru rejected it insisting that Maos China

should be given the seat before India. Even when China occupied Tibet in 1950, which

was then independent with close ties to India, Nehru ignored the danger and spent his

time over the Korean War. Menon even defended the Chinese action claiming that it

would never attack India!

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So beginning with the Gandhi-Quattrocchi partnership, more attention was given to

procurement and spending than analyzing defense needs. With notable exceptions like

Dr. Abdul Kalam and the late Raja Ramanna (a nuclear physicists), there was little

discussion about defense policy much less strategy or doctrine. Politicians and

bureaucrats couldnt care less about military strategy or defense needs as long as

opportunities existed for kickbacks in defense procurements. This factor should be keptin mind as we look at the outrage expressed by politicians over General V.K. Singhs

revelation that he was offered a large bribe to approve substandard army vehicles.

It is a sign of this state of affairs that even today India has no military doctrine. Does

anyone recall a debate in the parliament over military doctrine or strategy? The media is

no different. For all the hoopla over Gen Singhs revelation and the leaked letter, the

media is talking more about the scam than its implications for national security. It is no

different with the politicians. During the recent elections, did Rahul Gandhi or anyone

else talk about security or threats to the nation? Did anyone in the media raise it? All we

saw were family exhibits Rahul in his beard, Priyanka (without one), her husband until

finally her little children.

Kautilya on king's duty

Excerpts from the letter from the army chief V.K. Singh to Prime Minister Manmohan

Singh have appeared in newspapers. The letter raised serious questions about important

matters relating to national defense. The PM apparently ignored the army chiefs, and

possibly the Defense Ministers concerns. Knowing the strict protocol followed in the

army, one can be certain that Defense Minister Antony was fully aware of Gen Singhs

letter and had approved it. This suggests that the leak was probably deliberate, and

came from the defense ministry frustrated at the Prime Min isters indifference with

regard to national security.

We are constantly being told that Dr Manmohan Singh is personally honest though he is

presiding over the most corrupt government in modern Indian history. What good is

personal honesty when public officials under him are allowed to plunder and loot? After

all it was this personally honest man who allowed the swindler Ottavio Quattrocchi to

get away with his loot. Above all, he has neglected national security. There is no greater

duty than preserving the nations freedom. The PM Manmohan Singh may not worry

about it, but more than 2000 years ago, the greater thinker Kautilya reminded his king of

his duty.

Here are excerpts of a letter written by Kautilya to Emperor Chandragupta. I am grateful

to Sri Krishan Kak for bringing it to my attention. The wording may not be exact, but still

contains enough wisdom for the Prime Minister and the Defense Minister to read and

benefit from. (Their masters in 10 Janpath would benefit too, but they lack the literacy to

read it, let alone appreciate its perennial wisdom.) Kautilya discretely but firmly

reminded the king that his safety and security as well as of his empire depend on the

trust and sacrifice of his soldiers.

The Mauryan soldier does not the Royal treasuries enrich nor the Royal granaries fill. He

does not carry out trade and commerce nor produce scholars, littrateurs, artistes,

artisans, sculptors, architects, craftsmen, doctors and administrators. He does not build

roads and ramparts nor dig wells and reservoirs. He does not do any of this directly.

The soldier only and merely ensures that the tax, tribute and revenue collectors travel

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forth and return safely; that the farmer tills, harvests, stores and markets his produce

unafraid of pillage; that the trader, merchant and financier function and travel across the

length and breadth of the realm unmolested; that the savant, sculptor, maestro and

mentor create works of art, literature, philosophy and astrology in quietitude; that the

architect designs and builds his Vaastus without tension; that the tutor and the priest

teach and preach in peace; that the rishis meditate in wordless silence; that the doctorinvents cures and medicines undisturbed; that the mason and bricklayer work

unhindered; that the mother and the wife go about their chores and bring up children in

harmony and tranquility; that the cattle graze freely without being lifted or stolen.

Pataliputra reposes each night in peaceful comfort, O King, secure in the belief that the

distant borders of Magadha are inviolate and the interiors are safe and secure, thanks

only to the Mauryan Army standing vigil with naked swords and eyes peeled for action,

day and night, in weather fair and foul, all eight praharas (round the clock), quite

unmindful of personal discomfort and hardship, all through the year, year after year.

While the citizenry of the State contributes to see that the State prospers and

flourishes, the soldier guarantees it continues to EXIST as a State! To this man, ORajadhiraja, you owe a debt: please, therefore, see to it, on your own, that the soldier

continuously gets his dues in every form and respect, be they his needs or his wants, for

he is not likely to ask for them himself.

Then Kautilya, known also as Chanakya gave his king this blunt warning: The day the

soldier has to demand his dues will be a sad day for Magadha for then, on that day, you

will have lost all moral sanction to be King!

If the Indian state has been reduced to this condition, its people dont deserve to be

defended by soldiers willing to lay their lives down for the country. Why fight and defend

a government and a people who dont care for them?