Monday 23 September 2013

GEN VK SINGH FILES RTI APPLICATION: SEEKS TOP SECRET REPORT

Former Chief of the Army Staff General VK Singh has filed an RTI application seeking the Board of Officers Report on the activities of the 'shadowy' Technical Support Divison (TSD) of the Military Intelligence.

In the application, addressed to KL Nandwani, Deputy Secretary, MoD, filed under section 7 of the RTI Act, General (retd) Singh has sought all file notings of Army Headquarters and the Ministry of Defence on the report.

He has sought to personally inspect the files both at Army Headquarters and the MoD. The General has said since the matter affects his life and liberty, the files should be made available to him in the next 48 hours on receipt of application.

"The applicant may kindly be provided a copy of the report submitted to the MoD by the Indian Army prepared by the three members Board of Officers appointed to inquire into the functioning of the TSD, presided over by Lt Gen Vinod Bhatia, DGMO. The inspection of relevant files/records both at MoD and Army Headquarters may also be allowed," writes Gen VK Singh in the RTI application.

General Singh has also sought relevant files in Army Headquarters and MoD on reports of a 'coup' in 2012, saying file notings on the subject both at the Army headquarters and MoD may be provided to him for inspection. The General and his legal team are working on a multi pronged strategy to take on the government on the issue of the leak of the TSD report and a number of other documents - some marked 'Top Secret' from the MoD, as it affects "India's strategic assets," the General and his legal team insist.

General Singh recently cleared the air on TSD insisting it is wrong to claim it was his 'personal army'. "The need for TSD was felt during the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in 2008. It was created on the operational directive of the Raksha Mantri (Defence Minister AK Antony). It was given tasks which its officers diligently carried out to keep India's borders safe and to maintain internal security along with other agencies. It was not my private army and its activities were budgeted by the Directorate General of Military Intelligence," Gen VK Singh said in a recent interview.

The General is of the opinion there is nothing that implicates the TSD in the Lt Gen Vinod Bhatia report that was submitted to MoD in March and in turn sent to the National Security Advisor (NSA) Shiv Shankar Menon in July for closure.

Sources in MoD refused to comment on Gen VK Singh's RTI application. "Appropriate action would be taken at the appropriate time," sources said.

Wednesday 18 September 2013

Civil or Military: Pakistani State is anti India

Since October 1947 Pakistan has been spreading terror in Jammu and Kashmir. From Mohammad Ali Jinnah to Mian Nawaz Sharif every head of state in Pakistan has dreamt of forcibly occupying Jammu and Kashmir by hook or by crook. And from Pundit Jawahar Lal Nehru to Sardar Manmohan Singh every Indian head of state has fallen into Pakistan’s trap.

As Prime Minister Manmohan Singh prepares to walk into another Pakistani minefield, this time in New York, there is a sense of déjà vu. The usual suspects are back to writing how it is in India’s interest to strengthen civilian-democratic forces in Pakistan, how a stable Pakistan is in India’s interest – the same clichéd lines that have time and again been proven wrong. 

India has defeated Pakistan in every war the two countries fought since independence. 1947-48, a desperate Jinnah unable to bear the anguish of inheriting what he termed a `moth eaten Pakistan’ initiated the Direct Action Plan, sending in raiders and Pakistan army regulars into Jammu and Kashmir.

The Indian army gave Pakistan a bloody nose. In 1965, despite Pakistan launching a failed operation Gibralter and then Op Grand Slam, India beat Pakistan in Kargil sector – taking over Pt 13620, in Jammu and Kashmir taking the Haji Pir Pass, defeating Pakistan’s so called superior armour in Asal Uttar – where the Pakistani army abandoned its newly acquired Patton tanks and ran away from battle. And the birth of Bangladesh after the 1971 war and 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war in Indian custody – made Pakistan realise despite their bravado – claiming 1 Pakistani Muslim soldier was worth 10 Indians – the reality was different.

But Indian military might was never in doubt. It is the weak Indian leadership that fails to see through Pakistan’s evil design that is a cause for grave concern.
Before he left for Tashkent, Lal Bahadur Shastri swore he will not return the Haji Pir Pass to Pakistan. That was non negotiable. But when the talks began, Pakistan that had lost the war and India was in control of crucial Pakistani territory, mounted immense pressure on India to return Haji Pir and Pt 13620 in the Kargil sector.

Who created maximum trouble for the Indian camp with his belligerence in Tashkent? Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Veteran journalist Kuldeep Nayar, who had served as Shastri ji’s media advisor and accompanied him to Tashkent recounts how Bhutto continued to put a spoke in the wheels of negotiation.  A lot of pressure was mounted on Shastri ji and he signed the dotted line on the Tashkent Agreement that was so heavily loaded in Paskistan’s favour.

Kuldeep Nayar has written so betrayed was the nation by Shastri ji’s abject surrender that even his wife refused to come on the line and speak to him when he called her from Tashkent after having returned the Haji Pir Pass. Shastri ji passed away that night. When the information reached the Pakistani camp, celebrations broke out.  Veteran journalist Inder Malhotra writes in The Indian Express that when Bhutto heard of the celebrations, he opened the door of his Dacha and asked a senior (Civilian) aide Aziz Ahmed what happened. ``The Bastard has died,’’ said Aziz boisterously. ``Which Bastard died?’’ asked Bhutto and joined the celebrations when he realised Lal Bahadir Shastri had died.

Bhutto blamed Ayub Khan for the 1965 debacle of Pakistan and came on the political centre stage in Pakistan. Six years later Pakistan fought and lost another war with India. This was India’s most comprehensive win against Pakistan. East Pakistan became a new country and India had 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war in our custody.

The same Bhutto, this time as prime minister did not let a final solution happen on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. He may have gone down on his knees and begged for an honourable face saver for Pakistan, but thanks to the weak Indian leadership, lacking a strategic mindset, India lost on the negotiating table what we had won on ground.

Bhutto then returned to Pakistan and swore to wage a thousand year war against India. His daughter Benazir Bhutto proved to be a chip of the old block. After having decisively lost militarily against India,  she pursued  the Bear Trap policy – inflict a thousand cuts to kill the bear. Under  Mian Nawaz Sharif’s  first tenure as PM, Kargil happened even as Vajpayee took the bus of peace to Lahore in February 1999.

Indian foreign policy experts need to get out of the mentality that democracy needs to be strengthened in Pakistan and for that India must engage at the summit level with Pakistan, despite Pakistan state sponsored terror.  Whether a democracy or a dictatorship the psyche of Pakistani leadership is to take Kashmir by force, Indian leadership cannot afford to forget that.

Talk to Pakistan but every interaction should not be summit level and India should not unilaterally make any concessions towards Terroristan, just to strengthen democracy against military rule. There is an old saying in Hindi – Jaise Naag Nath, Vaise Saanp Nath. That is the story of Pakistani leadership whether civil or military.

Two:  it is nowhere written in the Bible, Gita or Koran that every summit level meeting with Pakistan has to be a success. Let there be failures. Let Pakistan understand, it is on notice. Unless Pakistan sponsored terror is checked effectively, there should be no question of any agreement with Pakistan. The under secretaries in the ministries of external affairs of both the countries can meet, but it is not necessary that every meet should be a success or be headed by the prime minister or the foreign minister.

Three: Keep the armed forces on board. After all it is the soldiers who ultimately have to shed blood to honour the prime minister’s commitment to Pakistan. If ground assessment indicates the environment is not conducive for talks, let that be no talks.

History since independence has shown us, Pakistan, at least the State, does not want good ties with India. Pakistan considers India weak, let Dr Manmohan Singh not return the favour.

Sunday 1 September 2013

PM's peace adventurism with Pak counter productive

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh, we are told, is very keen to meet his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif and give one last thrust to his still born peace initiative with Pakistan. Though officially, government sources insist nothing is certain yet.

Nawaz Sharif's certain utterances (though completely belied by actions on ground) have given Dr Singh and his team hope, that this time things are different and Pakistan genuinely wants peace with India. The prime minister's intentions are good. But the good doctor fails to appreciate that the way to hell is paved with good intentions. He risks the lives of hundreds of innocent Indians chasing his dream. 

Has Pakistan closed jihad factories?
Has Pakistan taken action against Hafiz Saeed?
Has Pakistan neutralised Dawood ibrahim?
Has Pakistan stopped printing and circulating Fake Indian Currency Notes?
Has Pakistan closed down terror launch pads along LoC?
Has Pakistan stopped training, arming and funding Indian Mujahideen?
Has Pak army stopped shelling/firing along LoC to push in terrorists in to J&K?
Has Pakistan stopped Project K to make J&K burn before 2014?

If the answer is yes to any of the above questions Dr Singh, go ahead and reward Nawaz Sharif by shaking his hand. If the answer to all of the above is no, then Dr Manmohan Singh you risk the lives of innocent Indians for personal glory and chasing a dream that has no foundations in present ground realities. 

Peace with Pakistan cannot be laid on the foundation of dead bodies of innocent Indians killed in Pakistani terrorist attacks. Elements in government say we must strengthen democratic forces in Pakistan. Do that but not at the cost of Indian lives.

India's biggest folly is we fail to learn from history.  

For the moment I am not even going back into history to 1947 when Pakistani raiders and army attacked Jammu and Kashmir and tried to occupy it by force as part of Mohammad Ali Jinnah's Direct Action Plan. For the moment lets look at Pakistan's most spectacular defeat in 1971 and the birth of Bangladesh. The Indian army had 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war and 15,000 sq kms of `Pak' territory in control.

Then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi could have sorted out the Jammu and Kashmir issue once and for all; or could have pushed for it. We returned territory and PoWs but did we get lasting peace in return? That time ZA Bhutto pleaded for leniency. He said after having lost then east Pakistan, let me not also lose Jammu and Kashmir. Please let me not go back losing face. Please lets have peace with honour. Indira Gandhi's advisors said: it is better to deal with a civilian government than to deal with a military government. India gave several concessions to Pakistan without getting back our own PoWs or ensuring LoC became IB. 

Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw said he told Indira Gandhi the Pakistanis had made a fool of her. And they had. 

Pakistan continues to fool us. Dear Prime minister, how is Nawaz Sharif any better or worse than a military dictator. Why is it India's responsibility to strengthen democratic forces in Pakistan at the cost of turning a blind eye to Pakistan military establishment sponsored terror attacks. Nawaz Sharif was at the helm of affairs in Pakistan when Kargil happened. There is a heated debate even in Pakistan whether he was in the loop or not. But he has been at the helm of affairs when our soldiers are slaughtered or civilians killed in terror attacks. 

Is it not within his power to arrest Hafiz Saeed? Or Riaz or Iqbal Bhatkal of Indian Mujahideen? Or Dawood Ibrahm? If not, you are wasting your time talking to him. If yes and yet he doesn't even then it is not only wasting time but even risking precious lives. 

Abu Jundal, Abdul Karim Tunda and Yasin Bhatkal's arrest have given the intelligence community and the security establishment more evidence of involvement of Pakistani state in spreading terror across India. But these arrests have not happened because of Pakistan but in spite of Pakistan. in the case of Abu Jundal, Pakistan's ISI fought his deportation to India tooth and nail, going to the extent of producing a Pakistani passport and family to show he is Pakistani.

India had to submit DNA samples to prove he is Indian (though a Pakistani at heart). So nothing that  Pakistan has done on ground gives any hope, Pakistan desires peace with India. It will continue to bleed India. While Dr Manmohan Singh and his family enjoy multi-tiered SPG protection, it is the aam admi who is at risk with such peace adventurism. 

Channels of communication must always be open. But not at the summit level. Not without adequate ground work and the right environment. Other wise India will be Sharm-el-Shiekhed again and the Thimpu Spirit will continue to haunt us.