The January night Raisina Hill was spooked: Two key army units moved towards Delhi without identifying Govt

by Guest Wed Apr 04, 2012 7:01 am

By 'C' word Shekhar Gupta refers to the word 'coup'.
-----
The Indian Express has had detailed conversations with key people and
sources at the very top of the political, civil and military
leadership. There is unanimity over General V K Singh’s impeccable
reputation as a sound, professional soldier, earned over nearly 42 years
of distinguished service to the Army. Nobody is using the “C” word to
imply anything other than “curious”. All else is considered an
impossibility.

But so strained has the political-military relationship been
these weeks, that nothing is easily dismissed as a routine misdemeanour.
The timing — the Chief’s petition on his date of birth was filed on the
morning of January 16 — did not help.

Sources speak of confusion and unease in the government. To be
fair, the MoD’s considered view now seems to be that it was a false
alarm, caused by some non-adherence to Standard Operating Procedures
(SoPs) by the Army and an alarmist civil/political reaction on a
particularly distrustful day.

We learn, however, as a consequence, that certain “important
correctives” have been put in place. Incidentally, the Home Ministry has
turned down the Army Headquarters’ recommendation (subsequent to the
events of January 16/17) to appoint Lt Gen. Choudhary as D-G Assam
Rifles, the paramilitary force it controls.

These are the bare facts of an unusual set of events. It is too
early to answer all the ‘hows, whys and the what-nexts’ of this. Or to
say whether it was an avoidable case of neurosis the Indian
establishment is — mercifully — not familiar with.

These facts may indeed be officially denied for now. But these
will be debated for a long time, forcing the UPA to introspect on its
mismanagement of the delicate civil-military relationship, bruised as it
is now by charges of corruption, bribes and bribe offers and
indiscipline. These will also have a bearing on the future course of
higher defence organisation and control in India.

http://www.indianexpress.com/news/the-january-night-raisina-hill-was-spooked-two-key-army-units-moved-towards-delhi-without-notifying-govt/932328/0

by doofus_maximus Thu Apr 05, 2012 4:41 pm

Did somebody plant this story on IE?

by charvaka Thu Apr 05, 2012 5:09 pm

This is some serious politics. General VK Singh is set to retire in a couple of months. So I am not sure what anybody gains by just discrediting him now.

The general's leaked letter is more worrisome in my mind. In India senior army officials are not supposed to leak their letters to the civilian leadership to the media. Subordination of military power to the civilian leadership is an essential feature of democracy, and any effort by the army to gain a more prominent role in political life is potentially dangerous.

by Merlot Daruwala Fri Apr 06, 2012 1:12 am

charvaka wrote:This is some serious politics. General VK Singh is set to retire in a couple of months. So I am not sure what anybody gains by just discrediting him now.

The general's leaked letter is more worrisome in my mind. In India senior army officials are not supposed to leak their letters to the civilian leadership to the media. Subordination of military power to the civilian leadership is an essential feature of democracy, and any effort by the army to gain a more prominent role in political life is potentially dangerous.

It's pretty clear the leak took place at his end. Why would the PMO leak a letter that could only give comfort to the nation's enemies?? I think that man went berserk once his personal dispute over his date of birth didnt get resolved to his satisfaction. The most hilarious part was when the SC threw out his case, he went to town claiming victory and saying that his honor had been upheld etc. Brajesh Misra, the former NSA, made a brilliant suggestion: send the man on compulsory leave for the next two months so he can retire in peace, before he does more damage.

As regards the coup fears, I don't think Shekar Gupta would carry a front page story under his byline if it was fake. The GoI must have been rattled by the army movement - given the timing and the frayed civilian-military relationship at that point.

More importantly, I don't see any merit in the complacency that most ppl have abt the possibility of a coup - as if there's something special about India that renders a military coup impossible. Frankly, it's a miracle there hasnt been a coup in India in these last six decades after independence. But that should not be taken for granted. A weak, indecisive government, widespread distrust of politicians, disgust with populist politics (aka "essence of democracy"), disillusionment with all politcial parties -- everything is in place for a coup. The ongoing judicial powergrab is an ongoing below-the-radar coup. There's nothing to stop a more explicit power grab, if the military so decides.

by truthbetold Fri Apr 06, 2012 6:25 am

This is not a good incident. There is not much dispute on the actual movement. The question was the intent. Was this normal troop movement or an intentional action? The govt should assert civilian authority to send a clear signal. If vk singh pulled any tricks he should be sent to prison. The age fight. The truck drama. The leak of letters. Insider leaks from defense dept. Weak govt and a soft defence minister. Belligerent army leader.

Whatever maybe the truth it is not good for india.

by Kris Fri Apr 06, 2012 10:26 am

truthbetold wrote:This is not a good incident. ---

Whatever maybe the truth it is not good for india.

>>> Scary as sh*t in fact. This is the one thing you take for granted in ndia- that there is a big red line between the army and the government. Sends a wrong message. Hope they send a very strong message to whichever idiot was in charge.

by charvaka Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:04 am

Merlot Daruwala wrote:
charvaka wrote:This is some serious politics. General VK Singh is set to retire in a couple of months. So I am not sure what anybody gains by just discrediting him now.

The general's leaked letter is more worrisome in my mind. In India senior army officials are not supposed to leak their letters to the civilian leadership to the media. Subordination of military power to the civilian leadership is an essential feature of democracy, and any effort by the army to gain a more prominent role in political life is potentially dangerous.

It's pretty clear the leak took place at his end. Why would the PMO leak a letter that could only give comfort to the nation's enemies?? I think that man went berserk once his personal dispute over his date of birth didnt get resolved to his satisfaction. The most hilarious part was when the SC threw out his case, he went to town claiming victory and saying that his honor had been upheld etc. Brajesh Misra, the former NSA, made a brilliant suggestion: send the man on compulsory leave for the next two months so he can retire in peace, before he does more damage.

As regards the coup fears, I don't think Shekar Gupta would carry a front page story under his byline if it was fake. The GoI must have been rattled by the army movement - given the timing and the frayed civilian-military relationship at that point.

More importantly, I don't see any merit in the complacency that most ppl have abt the possibility of a coup - as if there's something special about India that renders a military coup impossible. Frankly, it's a miracle there hasnt been a coup in India in these last six decades after independence. But that should not be taken for granted. A weak, indecisive government, widespread distrust of politicians, disgust with populist politics (aka "essence of democracy"), disillusionment with all politcial parties -- everything is in place for a coup. The ongoing judicial powergrab is an ongoing below-the-radar coup. There's nothing to stop a more explicit power grab, if the military so decides.

The government needs to put the army chief in his place. That sort of thing is best done behind closed doors, and I hope they are doing just that. My own suspicion is that the general may be angling for a political career after retirement. If he does that, he will be the first general in the history of the army to enter politics. I have very strong reservations about that (admittedly hypothetical) scenario.

The Indian Express report surprised me in another unrelated way. I hadn't known that some Sikh soldiers had mutineed after Operation Bluestar and started moving towards Delhi. I wonder how big that mutiny was, and what happened to the soldiers who disobeyed orders.

by doofus_maximus Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:10 am

Merlot Daruwala wrote:
charvaka wrote:This is some serious politics. General VK Singh is set to retire in a couple of months. So I am not sure what anybody gains by just discrediting him now.

The general's leaked letter is more worrisome in my mind. In India senior army officials are not supposed to leak their letters to the civilian leadership to the media. Subordination of military power to the civilian leadership is an essential feature of democracy, and any effort by the army to gain a more prominent role in political life is potentially dangerous.

It's pretty clear the leak took place at his end.
This is the first time I am hearing this. Makes sense though.
But leak or no leak, this troop movement is indeed scary and bizarre.

Why would the PMO leak a letter that could only give comfort to the nation's enemies?? I think that man went berserk once his personal dispute over his date of birth didnt get resolved to his satisfaction. The most hilarious part was when the SC threw out his case, he went to town claiming victory and saying that his honor had been upheld etc. Brajesh Misra, the former NSA, made a brilliant suggestion: send the man on compulsory leave for the next two months so he can retire in peace, before he does more damage.

As regards the coup fears, I don't think Shekar Gupta would carry a front page story under his byline if it was fake. The GoI must have been rattled by the army movement - given the timing and the frayed civilian-military relationship at that point.

More importantly, I don't see any merit in the complacency that most ppl have abt the possibility of a coup - as if there's something special about India that renders a military coup impossible. Frankly, it's a miracle there hasnt been a coup in India in these last six decades after independence. But that should not be taken for granted. A weak, indecisive government, widespread distrust of politicians, disgust with populist politics (aka "essence of democracy"), disillusionment with all politcial parties -- everything is in place for a coup. The ongoing judicial powergrab is an ongoing below-the-radar coup. There's nothing to stop a more explicit power grab, if the military so decides.

by truthbetold Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:16 am

Sikh mutiny was a major news. It was quelled in a day. A political solution was found for mutineers. No widespread court martials or executions. One must remember that mutiny was a reaction to delhi butchting of sikhs following mrs i murder.

by charvaka Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:21 am

doofus_maximus wrote:This is the first time I am hearing this. Makes sense though.
But leak or no leak, this troop movement is indeed scary and bizarre.

The leak is a separate story. General Singh wrote a letter to the PMO about India's defense preparedness and the letter was leaked (as Merlot says, most likely by him) to the media.

by doofus_maximus Fri Apr 06, 2012 11:37 am

charvaka wrote:
doofus_maximus wrote:This is the first time I am hearing this. Makes sense though.
But leak or no leak, this troop movement is indeed scary and bizarre.
The leak is a separate story. General Singh wrote a letter to the PMO about India's defense preparedness and the letter was leaked (as Merlot says, most likely by him) to the media.

I misread your comment and MD's follow up. Too many leaks and too convoluted politics. I don't know if the main players can keep all this straight.

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