Sri Lanka's Faustian bargain with Pakistan: 
Exit LTTE, enter ISI

Not surprisingly, the Easter blasts that killed hundreds in Sri Lanka have revealed a Pakistani connection.

Rakesh Krishnan   New Delhi     Last Updated: April 22, 2019  | 20:28 IST

Wherever there is a terror attack, chances are you will find Pakistani fingerprints all over the place. From Times Square in New York to the streets of Kabul and of course across India, virtually every bombing can be traced back to the terror factories located in Peshawar, Bahawalpur or Karachi. Not surprisingly, the Easter blasts that killed hundreds in Sri Lanka have revealed a Pakistani connection. Among the suicide bombers was Zahran Hashim, an Islamist extremist imam, who is believed to have visited Pakistan in 2018.

Hashim was a demagogue for the National Thowheeth Jamaath, which was known in Sri Lanka for vandalising Buddhist statues, but has the larger aim of spreading global jehad. His speeches are straight out of the Islamic State's playbook, inciting Sri Lankan Muslims to attack Buddhists, Hindus and Christians.

Islamic terrorism in Sri Lanka seems counter intuitive because the country's less than 10 per cent Muslim minority has no beef with the 70 per cent Buddhist majority. To get to the root of Islamic terror in the island nation, one must understand the outlook of the Sri Lankan Muslim.

Decades before the Gulf sheikdoms and ISIS had started exporting the doctrine of jehad, Sri Lankan Muslims had become infected with the virus of fanaticism. Sabiha Hasan, a Karachi-based researcher, writes in Pakistan Horizon (Vol. 38, No. 2) that in the 1940s when Indian Muslims "demanded a separate homeland for themselves, Sri Lankan Muslims supported their struggle". Basically, Sri Lankan Muslims were supporting India's breakup despite having no skin in the game.

Instead of being wary about the extraterritorial loyalties of its Muslim population, Sri Lankan politicians went full-tilt chummy with the country that its Muslims identified strongly with - Pakistan. The heads of state of both Sri Lanka and Pakistan exchanged official visits. In 1954, Sri Lankan Prime Minister John Kotelawala said in Islamabad: "We were so close to each other. We should know each other better and try to help each other."

During the 1971 Bangladesh crisis, after India withdrew landing and overflight rights to Pakistan, Sri Lanka granted refuelling facilities to Pakistan International Airlines. In March-April 1971, as the Pakistan Army launched Operation Searchlight to crush the Bengali independence movement in East Pakistan, Pakistani civilian and military aircraft made 174 landings at the Katunayake international airport. While Sri Lanka denied these aircraft were ferrying soldiers or weapons, in reality they were purely military flights that transported thousands of heavily armed troops who killed three million Bengali citizens over the next eight months.

Ironically, as Pakistani military flights passed through Katunayake in April 1971, a contingent of Indian Army troops was guarding the airport during a communist insurgency that took 10,000 lives across Sri Lanka. Indian Navy warships were also deployed off Colombo to defend the port.

The bonhomie continued after the war. In December 1976, the Colombo Municipal Council named a public ground in the national capital as Jinnah Maidan.

War in the north

It was during the civil war involving the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) that the Pakistani military and its shadowy spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) was able to develop close links with Sri Lanka's military. In May 2008, Lt. Gen Sarath Fonseka, the chief of the Sri Lanka Army visited Islamabad with a shopping list that included 22 tanks, hundreds of thousands of grenades and other weapons and ammunition. The deal was worth over $100 million. According to 'The News' of Pakistan, as part of the cooperation, PAF pilots participated in air strikes against LTTE bases in August 2008. Islamabad also positioned a group of Pakistan Army officers in Colombo to guide the Sri Lankan security forces in their operations.

According to Bahukutumbi Raman, who headed the counter terrorism division at the Research and Analysis Wing, Pakistan's military assistance took on an ominous turn in September 2003 after the unpublicised visit of General Mohammed Aziz Khan of the Pakistan Army to Colombo. Since the Indian policy was to defeat the LTTE - without overtly entering the conflict - New Delhi had never objected to the growing military ties between Sri Lanka and Pakistan, but Khan's secret visit upset Delhi. The Tamil Guardian says this was because Khan "had co-ordinated Pakistan's proxy war against India through various jehadi terrorist organisations" and "played an active role in the clandestine occupation of Indian territory in Kargil".

The Dawn newspaper reports that in 2011 the then Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari offered training to Sri Lankan police and intelligence agencies.

Exit LTTE, enter ISI

The ISI had for years been trying to get a foothold in Sri Lanka. Since it could not obviously get sympathisers among the country's Buddhists, Hindus and Christians, the spy agency's hope lay with the Muslim minority. However, the LTTE's dominance prevented outsiders from setting foot in these areas.

In fact, the LTTE had expelled most of the Sri Lankan Muslims from their coastal enclaves in the east, after the Tigers discovered they were collaborating with the government forces. Despite being condemned to second class status by the Sri Lankan constitution, the Muslim population - largely of Tamil origin - refused to join the Tamil struggle for equal rights. Their refusal to support the Tigers is reflected in Zahran Hashim's words: "The loyalty of Muslims should only be for the nation ruled by Muslims."

After the Sri Lankan security forces eliminated the LTTE with help from Pakistan, the field was safe for the ISI to move in. The long interaction between the Sri Lankan security forces and the free hand given to Pakistani military and spies no doubt allowed the ISI to develop contacts among the local Muslims once they returned to their eastern strongholds. According to Ceylon Today, the ISI has used the banned terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba and its charitable wing, the Idara Khidmat-e-Khalq, as proxies to radicalise Sri Lankan Muslims.

Madhura Seneviratne of Australia's government owned Special Broadcasting Service reveals Pakistan's motives: "Using Sri Lanka as a staging post, the ISI's primary and apparent objective is to encircle India from all sides. It wanted to use the island nation to access south India, both in terms of finding terror networks as well as for recruitment of cadres."

N. Manoharan of the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies explains why Sri Lanka has entered into a Faustian bargain with the jehadis in Pakistan: "Pakistan's activities in Sri Lanka have not been seen with suspicion by the security establishment of the island state. Sri Lanka-Pakistan relations have been good without any irritants. Sri Lanka is ever grateful to Pakistan for all the military support during the Eelam War. 

In addition, when Sri Lanka was hauled (up) by the international community for human rights excesses during that war, Islamabad rendered unstinted diplomatic support."

Clearly, despite the collapse of Sri Lanka's once vibrant economy due to the civil war, the Sinhala elites have learnt nothing. It was their Apartheid-like policies aimed at the Tamils that resulted in the rise of the LTTE. Now, their carte blanche to the ISI could spawn more Islamic terror groups like the National Thowheeth Jamaath which could send the country into another cycle of violence.

Threat to India

The ISI penetration of Sri Lanka presents a huge threat for India. In 2013, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested two Sri Lankan Muslims, Mohammed Sakir Hussain and Suleman Hussain, and an Indian Tamil, Thameen Ansari, on charges of spying. All three confessed that their handlers were agents posted at the Pakistani High Commission in Colombo. In 2014, the NIA arrested a third Sri Lankan national named Arun Selvarajan in Chennai for spying on behalf of the ISI. Selvarajan's arrest indicates that Pakistan has been able to make inroads into peninsular India.

The ISI's Sri Lankan bureau has collected information on a large number of strategic assets in Tamil Nadu and its neighbouring states. Sri Lankan Muslims were able to easily blend into the local population and do the recce work for the Pakistanis. According to Manoharan, the ISI has already obtained data on critical assets including the Kalapakkam nuclear plant, NSG hub in Chennai, Coast Guard installations on the eastern coast, Officers Training Academy in Chennai, and the ports of Nagapattinam, Chennai, Ennore, Vizag and Kochi. "Going by the confessions of the arrestees, information gathering was meant for planning a terror attack," he says. "The first ever terror attack in Chennai in May (2014) was not unconnected to the larger ISI plot."

Checkmating the ISI

India must accept a large part of the blame for the mess in Sri Lanka. Firstly, by refusing to carve out an independent Tamil Eelam, New Delhi failed to protect the interests of the Sri Lankan Tamils. At the very least, it should have ensured an autonomous Tamil area in the North and East. For, if India could provide special status to J&K then why not provide the same to Sri Lankan Tamils who are more loyal to India than the Kashmiris.

Secondly, if India was prepared to sell out the Sri Lankan Tamils for larger strategic reasons, then it should have got a good value for the deal. Instead, it stood by as both Pakistan and China stepped into the vacuum created by the LTTE's downfall and India's exit. In fact, General Fonseka has gone on record that his country turned to China and Pakistan for military purchases only after New Delhi refused to supply weapons to it.

One way to retrieve the situation is to conduct a massive counter intelligence sweep that will dismantle the ISI network in Sri Lanka. India's advantage is that it still commands goodwill among the island's Tamils who can be relied upon to identify the jehadis. Also, Sri Lanka's cosiness with Pakistan can't be allowed to become a security threat for India. Just as the US won't allow the Russians to meddle in Mexico, India shouldn't permit Islamabad to buy influence in Colombo. First up, the islanders must be told they have to find alternate sources for their weapons and ammunition.

The Sinhala leadership must be reminded that while Sri Lanka is literally in India's backyard, it is thousands of miles from Pakistan. Colombo cannot fight local fires with water from distant shores.

LIAR RAJDEEP RAN PROPAGANDA TO HELP CONGRESS

‘Mea culpa’: Rajdeep Sardesai finally admits Modi wasn’t responsible for 2002 and that media sensationalised the riots

One is bound to wonder then that if Rajdeep agrees now that Modi had no role to play in the riots and that the media sensationalised the riots, was he deliberately fanning the sensationalism further since 2002 up until recently?

 OPINDIA STAFF

APRIL 26, 2019

In an interview with author-journalist Manu Joseph, Rajdeep Sardesai, the Michelangelo of Indian journalism, who made a career out of demonising Narendra Modi for Gujarat riots seems to have finally found some remorse for his relentless campaign against Prime Minister Modi for the unfortunate incidents that followed after the train burning at Godhra that left Hindus dead.

Responding to a question asking whether Narendra Modi the then Chief Minister of Gujarat in 2002 was in any way responsible for the incident, Rajdeep Sardesai admitted that he personally believed that Modi was not responsible for the 2002 riots that followed after Godhra massacre.

“It is unfair of us to say that Mr Modi or anyone was responsible for the riots. He did not ask or incite violence,” said Rajdeep Sardesai.

However, Rajdeep Sardesai claimed that Chief Minister Modi was somewhat complacent as he did not try stopping riots. He maintained that Modi was not in control of the state as he had just come to power in 2002 while VHP leader Praveen Thogadia had the real control.

According to Rajdeep Sardesai, Modi was not as powerful as people thought and he backed off during the 2002 riots by ceding space to Praveen Thogadia. However, Rajdeep went on to assume that there is always some political capital in violence, subtly hinting that Narendra Modi politically benefitted from the 2002 incident.

Expressing regret over the reporting of riots in the media, Rajdeep Sardesai confessed that Gujarat riots were sensationalised by the media. Rajdeep went on to add that there is a need for self-censorship while reporting sensitive incidents like riots. Rajdeep finally agreed to the fact that media was indeed “mea culpa” for magnifying the intensity of riots.

While this revelation by Rajdeep comes now, up until recently, Rajdeep has been saying that Modi and BJP have “blood on their hands” and has compared the 1984 Sikh Genocide where Congress leaders were directly involved and Rajiv Gandhi himself had incited violence by making the ‘when a big tree falls’ speech to 2002, where he now admits that Modi had no role and the courts have also given him a clean chit.

Soldier and Soldiering -1971 War Story

1971 STORY

From an officer....

During 1971 war my Bn (3 Grenadiers) fought the Battle of Jarpal. 3 Grenadiers captured Jarpal which was defended by 35 FF. In this battle 3 Grenadiers was awarded a PVC (to then Maj Hoshiyar Singh), a MVC (then CO, Lt Col V P Airy), 4 VrCs and host of other awards. Incidentally Kheterpal was also awarded PVC in the same battle.

35 FF launched seven counter attacks on 3 Grenadiers. The last one was led by their CO, Lt Col Mohd Akram Raza. During the counter attack he was hit by a MMG burst on the face and succumbed to his injuries. Lt Col Airy, CO 3 Grenadiers wrote his citation and the offr was posthumously awarded Hilal-e-Jurat (I think eqvt of our MVC).

Later when 3 Grenadiers was in Ethiopia one of the offrs of 35 FF was also in the msn. He was invited to all the functions to mark our battle honour day, in which his bn was decimated ( 8 offrs, incl CO and over 350 other rks KIA). I must say it was to the credit of the Pakistani offr that he attended all the functions, incl Mandir parade. Later the CO of the bn when he came on lve to India got a sari for the Pakistani offr's mother. The Pakistani offr in turn brought a portrait of Lt Col Akram Raza, which is prominently displayed in our mess.

I think that's what soldiering is all about.

Laptops to Stay in Bags as TSA Brings New Technology to Airports

Air passengers at a growing number of U.S. airports will no longer need to remove electronics, liquids, and other items from their carry-on luggage at security checkpoints as the Transportation Security Administration rolls out new technology.

The TSA took a major step in a broader plan to revamp its overall screening process with faster, more advanced technology when it signed a contract Thursday for hundreds of new carry-on baggage screening machines, Administrator David Pekoske said on a press call Friday. The agency has tested the new technology at more than a dozen airports since 2017, along with the relaxed protocols that allow passengers to leave items such as laptops and toiletries inside their luggage.

The rollout of the computed tomography, or CT, machines will begin this summer, Pekoske said. The $97 million contract will buy 300 machines, but the list of airports receiving them has yet to be made final, Pekoske said.

A Transportation Security Administration worker screens luggage at LaGuardia Airport in New York City.

The technology creates 3-D images of bags’ contents and will eventually be able to detect items automatically that the TSA now asks passengers to remove, he said.

“It’s not a little bit better, it’s a lot better,” Pekoske said of the technology.

In total, the agency expects to replace its more than 2,000 X-ray machines with the CT equipment over the next eight years, he said. The five-year contract was awarded to Edgewood, Maryland-based Smiths Detection, but the next phase of procurement may include multiple vendors, he said.

While the CT pilot program didn’t show reduced wait times at participating airports, the agency is expecting the technology will speed up lines as passengers and staffers get used to the new processes. Pekoske said he expected more staff to be needed initially as the new machines are put in place.

President Donald Trump called for another 300 CT machines to be funded in his fiscal 2020 budget request released earlier this month.

Col Rajendra Shukla(Retd)

MD,Daksh Consultants

Airport Biometrics Trials Expand on Three Continents

Trials of new biometric systems are launching and continuing at several airports around the world, as airports and airlines seek to increase automation to speed up identification processes.

SITA Smart Path has been deployed for a trial of using facial recognition instead of a boarding pass for security processing at Athens International Airport, the company announced. The airport, Greece’s largest, is the first in Europe to use biometric identity at security, according to the announcement.

“Passengers really appreciate the ease of using SITA’s Smart Path trial,” says Alexandros Ziomas, acting director of Athens International Airport’s IT&T Business Unit. “It has reduced the time taken to check in and verify passenger identity at security to only a few seconds. It will solve a key challenge for us by ensuring a steady flow of passengers to the security area. This is a service we would like to extend to other steps in the journey over time.”

The biometric service is being offered to Aegean Airlines passengers, and because Smart Path can be tailored to specific airport or airline requirements, could also be extended to other airlines operating out of Athens in the future.

“As most airports around the world already have self-service infrastructure in place, installing Smart Path is cost-effective and easy to implement,” comments SITA President for Europe Sergio Colella. “Yet, the improvement to security and the passenger experience is tremendously positive. It explains the growing interest in this solution from both airlines and airports in Europe and around the world.”

Palm vein biometrics deployed to 14 Korean airports

The Korea Airports Corporation has deployed Fujitsu’s biometric palm vein authentication system to all 14 domestic airports under its jurisdiction. The system began operation on December 28, 2018, and has been used more than a million times by 160,000 individuals with registered palm vein patterns.

Passenger identity is confirmed with biometrics instead of the citizen ID card which was previously required. The automated process both improves the accuracy of identification and significantly shortens the time taken for the process, according to the announcement.

Facial recognition-powered customer service kiosks reach Chinese airports

Chinese technology expert Matthew Brennan has filmed a kiosk as it identified him with facial biometrics, provided flight plan information, and offered him directions to his gate, Fast Companyreports.

Fast Company suggests that the system represents a warning about the potential of facial recognition and collection of personal data for abuse, and says the Chinese government can clearly identify citizens anywhere with the technology.

Panasonic recently demonstrated similar technology as part of its One ID biometric airport solution.

JFK facial recognition trial to expand

The facial recognition technology deployed to a boarding gate at JFK’s terminal 5 for JetBlue passengers in partnership with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is reducing the amount of time necessary for passengers to move through the airport while increasing security, according to Collins Aerospace VP of Global Airport Systems Christopher Forrest.

The trial was launched in November, and may soon be expanded to include either self-service baggage drop or an end-to-end system powered by facial biometrics, based on previous comments by Forrest.

Collins Aerospace says in the trial announcement that its SelfPass system is uniquely scalable and hardware-independent, enabling airports and airlines to add biometric capabilities to various touchpoints.

“The innovative use of biometrics for customer processing is driving the aviation industry forward and aligns with IATA’s One ID concept,” said Ian Deason, senior vice president of customer experience for JetBlue. “By working together with Collins Aerospace, we’re bringing JetBlue customers a personal, helpful and simple experience each time they fly.”

SelfPass trials at Bristol and Dublin airports

Collins Aerospace also announced today that its SelfPass airport biometric solution is now being trialed at Bristol Airport and Dublin Airport, enabling passengers to use a single biometric enrollment in multiple countries.

Bristol Airport offers passengers multiple biometric checkpoints, making the process easy from check-in to boarding. When SelfPass rolls out in Dublin next month, passengers will be the first to be able to take advantage of the multi-country solution.

“Dublin and Bristol Airports are changing the way passengers travel and making the process easier and more efficient,” explains Forrest. “For example, it takes less than one second to capture and process a passenger’s facial image and eliminates the need to repeatedly present travel documents. We see this as another leap forward for our biometric technology to play a key role in making the connected aviation ecosystem a reality.”

At Bristol, the new trial will biometrically enable multiple touchpoints, including: check-in, self-bag drop, security and boarding gates and the initial trial will be extended to include website and mobile enrollment, and lounge access.

“The passenger growth at Bristol Airport is increasing, and we are looking at using technology like the Collins Aerospace biometric solution set to help make our airport a high-quality experience for our customers,” said Graeme Gamble, chief operating officer for Bristol Airport. “The cooperation of Collins and the Bristol Airport team is making Bristol a leader in Airport innovation and customer service.”

“We are really pleased to be an early adopter of this new technology designed to further enhance the experience for both our passengers and our airline customers at Dublin Airport,” added Frances O’Brien, vice president of PMO for daa. “We are delighted with the progress of the trial so far and look forward to extending the offering to a wider audience, including those travelling to the U.S. in the coming months.”

Early results of LAX trial

The facial recognition system from Gemalto deployed for a trial of American Airlines passengers’ CBP checks at Los Angeles Airporthas been largely successful through its first 90 days, airport-technology.com reports.

Gemalto VP of Mobile Financial Solutions Amol Deshmukh says the exceptions to the trial’s success involve specific cases such as toddlers, who may not match even relatively recent passport images.

In a recent Department of Homeland Services biometric testing rally, Gemalto’s system successfully acquired images in less than five seconds for 99 percent of subjects, compared to an average of 65 percent, according to the report.

Col Rajendra Shukla(retd)

MD  Daksh Consultants

RAFALE DHAMAKA

राफेल का धमाका :

राफेल सौदे से कांग्रेस को जितना कमीशन मिलने वाला था, उससे भी अधिक रकम चीन से कांग्रेस ने राफेल नहीं खरीदने के नाम पर डकार ली, और ऐ.के.ऐन्टोनी से बयान दिलवा दिया कि भारत के पास फंड नहीं है, खरीद नहीं सकते।
अब मोदी जी के शासन में सौदा हो गया है, तब चीन ने मियां राहुल को तलब किया।
राहुल ने भारत में चीनी दूतावास में जाकर राफेल के बारे में सफ़ाई दी। मगर चीनी अधिकारी संतुष्ट नहीं हुए, और वे बोले "राहुल बाबा, राफेल के मामलों में तुम चीन जाकर बात कर लो, अन्यथा खाया माल वापस कर दो!"
अब राहुल दूतावास से बाहर आकर बोला कि "हम डोकलाम के विषय पर बात करने गए थे!" इस मूर्ख पप्पू ने भारत के लोगों को पप्पू बना दिया।
अब चीन के बुलावे पर चीन जाये तो जाये कैसे? तब युक्ति निकाली गई कि राहुल बाबा मानसरोवर यात्रा चीन के रास्ते जाएगा। मगर सिर्फ चीन जाकर राफेल नहीं खरीदने का कमीशन जो पप्पू ने खाया था, उसके सामने चीन ने दो शर्तें रखीं:
एक, मोदी के शासन में खरीदा सौदा जैसे भी हो, कैंसल करवाओ, या उसमें क्या-क्या उपकरण लगवाए जा रहे हैं, हमें बताओ।
दूसरा, अगर ये नहीं कर सकते तो, खाया हुआ कमीशन वापस करना होगा।
अब पप्पू भारत आकर मोदी विरोधी पार्टियों को प्रलोभन देकर, "चौकीदार चोर-चौकीदार चोर" पागल की तरह चिल्लाने लगा।
जब भाजपा ने पूरी तरह से झाड़ दिया, तब सुर्पीम कोर्ट गया! वहां भी नाकाम रहा!
इधर पप्पू से लोग पूछ रहे थे: मानसरोवर जा कर कैसा लगा? अब वह लोगों को क्या उत्तर दे? दिमाग तो पप्पू का संट था! अगर राफेल मोदी जी से कैंसल न कर सके, तो चीन से खाया माल वापस करना पड़ेगा। तो मानसरोवर वाले मामले में राहुल सटीक वर्णन नहीं कर सका था! शायद वो व्हीडियो (मानसरोवर के विषय में पूछे सवाल पर) वाइरल भी हुआ था।
पप्पू सही उत्तर नहीं दे सका था, और हकलाने लगा था।
इधर, चीन से फिर निर्देश मिला: JPC कराकर, उसमें लगने वाले उपकरण के बारे में हमें जानकारी दे दो, तभी हम तुम्हें बक्ष देंगे!
तब से पप्पू ने जेपीसी की रट लगाई है!
इधर, मोदीजी को सब अनुभव था, चीन की डिमांड के बारे में पता चल गया! तब मोदीजी ने जेपीसी के लिए मना कर दिया, क्यों कि सारी जानकारी चीन तक आसानीसे चली जाती, और पप्पू चीन से खाया माल वापस करने से बच जाता।
इसलिए राफेल मुद्दा चुनाव तक रखकर, चीन का माल वापस करने से बचने के लिए, चुनाव में ये पगला जी-जान लगायेगा! और अन्य पार्टियों को भी खाये माल में प्रलोभन दिया है।
पप्पू ने सोच रखा है: अगर चुनाव के नतीजे मोदी पक्ष में नहीं आए, तब हम चीन के र्निदेशके हिसाब से काम कर देंगे, और राफेल को कैंसल कर देंगे!
मेरा विचार है कि पिछली कांग्रेस सरकार ने "राफेल क्यों नहीं खरीदा?" इस पर मोदी सरकार जांच बिठा दे, तो सारी अकड़ पप्पू की निकल जायेगी।
।। जय भारत ।।
पूर्ण बहुमत की सरकार क्या कर सकती है, पिछले पांच साल में देख लिया। अब प्रचंड बहुमत की क्या कर सकती है, अगले पांच साल में देखेंगे।

Defence minister with vision needed

Defence minister with vision needed

The recent bizarre defence of the MoD against denial of Non-Functional Upgradation to the armed forces on the pretext of palatial houses,
army schools and other facilities including Military Service Pay has enhanced the divide
between the MoD and the armed forces expected to operate under them.

Harsha Kakar | New Delhi | March 26, 2019 12:10 am

    

Ministry of Defence, Government of India. (Image: Facebook/@DefenceMinIndia)

In his eulogy to Manohar Parrikar, Nitin Gokhale writes of a conversation with him soon after he took over as the defence minister. Parrikar stated, “In these two-three months that I have been here (MoD), the most striking aspect I noticed is the all-pervasive atmosphere of suspicion. Everyone is looking over his or her own shoulder. There is very little coordination; the overwhelming tendency is to first say ‘no’ to everything.” It was this that he had tried to overcome. These words are the closest to the truth concerning the errant MoD that any politician has made.

His words were echoed by the MoS defence, Subhash Bhamre in a presentation to the PMO in December 2017, when he stated, “Of the total of 144 schemes contracted during the last three financial years, only 8-10 per cent fructified within the stipulated time period. The average time taken by these schemes was 52 months, which is more than twice the laid down duration of 16-25 months stipulated in the defence procurement policy.”

He added, “There is the evident lack of synergy between the stakeholders that is amongst various departments of the MoD. The departments appear to be working in independent silos driven by policy/procedures.” It is the silo approach which has led to the MoD being not only distrusted but also a failure in many ways.

For over seven decades, while the world has moved forward, integrated the armed forces with the ministry responsible for them, India hesitates. The reason is the illogical fear of a coup. Consecutive Indian governments have failed to trust their own armed forces on which the nation has complete faith, despite it never letting them down. This distrust has been fuelled by a bureaucracy which is hesitant to dilute its control.

The MoD is a bureaucratic ministry responsible for all aspects of the military. No one who is posted to the ministry has ever had a day’s military service, remains unaware of what he must deal with and yet desires control over the services. In such an atmosphere the ministry will remain a stumbling block.

Demands for equipment projected by the armed forces take years to fructify. There is never any rush or a desire to push cases. They remain under process for ages. As a policy every case file must be returned multiple times with queries which could be handled in minutes. The reason – delay, deny and avoid decision-making so as not to become a part of a controversy.

The cases are only processed once the armed forces raise hue and cry. The impact on national security is of no concern to the bureaucracy as they remain unanswerable for lack of capabilities. Criticism by every single parliamentary committee on shortfalls in defence preparedness are ignored. Such inaction only adds to distrust.

The recent bizarre defence of the MoD against denial of Non-Functional Upgradation to the armed forces on the pretext of palatial houses, army schools and other facilities including Military Service Pay has enhanced the divide between the MoD and the armed forces expected to operate under them. None of the reasons bear logic as has been projected on multiple social media platforms.

The misuse of canteen profits to fund civil services facilities including schools specifically created for their wards, their medical treatment and availability of five-star civil services clubs with everything subsidised has been ignored. These bizarre claims only highlight the venom existing within the MoD against the armed forces they are duty bound to serve. A recent example of existing hatred was the tweet by the MoD spokesperson targeting a decorated ex-Naval Chief. In such an environment there can only be dislike.

The Home Minister upgraded the risk factor for the CAPFs operating under them from R1H2 to R1H1 post Pulwama, which implied an enhancement in monetary terms. The bureaucracy is already at a much higher grade. A simple comparison indicates that while an army officer receives Rs 16,900, the CAPFs obtain Rs 25,000 and the bureaucracy is granted Rs 50,000 for the same risk factor. The MoD has yet to resolve the anomaly, despite the defence minister claiming she micro-manages the ministry. Such actions imply the armed forces are treated as second class citizens by their own ministry.

The MoD put forth an illogical proposal to equate the Armed Forces HQ Civil Cadre with the armed forces, while ignoring similar equivalence with the IAS. It led to the service chiefs creating a hue and cry, compelling the MoD to back down. Similar has been the case with the bureaucracy attempting to grab armed forces establishments including the Canteen Services Department. Such actions lead to service chiefs devoting more time battling internal enemies than external. In such an environment, can there be unity in approach?

Within the nation and especially amongst the military community there is a growing feeling that the armed forces are a political tool to garner votes but dumped thereafter. No defence minister has had the foresight to consider reorganisation of the MoD to cater for modern threats and enhancing joint operations. This, despite recommendations of every committee formed by every government in independent India’s history. Clearly, lack of foresight is a feature of our political leadership.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley admitting post the budget and prior to elections, that the defence budget is low and should be enhanced, is another vote garnering gimmick. He had been defence minister twice in this government, was aware of every shortcoming, yet failed to act. Stating the same after the chicken has flown the coop is a poor reflection of the understanding of his government.

Can the armed forces, deployed in the worst of conditions, battling threats everyday trust any government and the MoD to provide them even essentials? The answer is an emphatic no. This distrust will remain unless some government, in the coming days appoints a defence minister with vision, capability and a desire to reform the MoD by taking the bull by its horns. Does India possess someone with such a capability? A point to consider.

(The writer is a retired Major-General of the Indian Army)