Military & Aerospace

The Fake Military Coup
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Issue Net Edition | Date : 24 Feb , 2014

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh should order investigations by a retired Supreme Court Judge into the fake military coup propagated by former Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma maligning and belittling the Indian Army.

With the political leadership clearly stating that there was no coup attempt, babu Shashi Kant Sharma and others need to be investigated and taken to task for creating a false alarm.

It is becoming obvious that the ‘babus’ in MoD, who are unable to deliver modern weapon platforms efficiently to the military, are hell bent on lowering the image of the Indian Army, which in turn is demoralizing the troops and acts as a disincentive for the young to serve their country.

This amounts to grave anti-India activity, weakening the sinews of the nation. With the political leadership clearly stating that there was no coup attempt, babu Shashi Kant Sharma and others need to be investigated and taken to task for creating a false alarm.

It is imperative that we visit the contours of the military coup executed by General Musharraf in Pakistan on 12 October 1999. All militaries particularly the Army are highly trained to conduct ruthless operations against their adversary. The speed and precision of movement with the weapons they wield make them formidable and unstoppable.

When the military coup took place in Pakistan, the Army under directions from Lt Gen Usmani, seized the air control tower to enable Musharraf to land, troops took over control of the state-run television, put the prime minister Nawaz Sharif under house arrest by encircling his residence, took over control of international airports and snapped the international phone lines. Thus, neutralizing the political leadership at one go and ensuring that the bureaucracy towed the line of the Pakistan Army.

When armies move, whether in operational area or in civil areas, they have studied all aspects of the situation, readied adequate firepower to neutralize dissent, and thought out the end game well in advance.

All military coups will have similar patterns, no matter which army conducts it.

Compare the above with the picture painted by former Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma, falsely implicating that the political leadership at the highest level was jittery. If the Indian Army was executing a ‘coup’, then the Shashi Kant Sharmas’ of this world would not have the luxury of inviting the former DGMO Lt Gen AK Chaudhary late at night to find out, ‘bataiye kya ho raha hai’ (tell me what is happening?), because in a coup mode the Indian Army and not the bureaucrat would be calling the shots. The former Army Chief Gen VK Singh would not be going to the Supreme Court for redressal of the age controversy. Instead he would be at the helm of affairs and conducting the operations personally to takeover New Delhi.

India being a federal structure all state capitals will also simultaneously required to be brought under the Indian Army’s control, unlike Pakistan where merely Islamabad has to be taken over.

The movement of a mechanized infantry unit without ammunition from Hissar and a paratroopers detachment from Agra late at night on January 16, 2012 were conducting normal routine exercises unrelated to each other. In a huge army, there is continuous training of local units, which are neither projected to the DGMO or to the Army HQs. Also,every Brigade Commander upwards independently is authorized to mobilize his formation within an hour 24×7 and they don’t need permissions for war mobilization.

At the same time, there are always sufficient well-trained and armed troops available in the capital to take over a small city like New Delhi. It really does not require extra troops from outside with two permanent infantry brigades, one artillery brigade, engineers and signal regiments that are stationed in the Capital. In fact, when a new Army Chief takes over, his battle hardened infantry battalion or one of the battalions from his regiment serve in the Capital as a personal honour: a battle hardened infantry battalion by itself is a very lethal force that can create mayhem. Furthermore, since this picture was painted by babu Sharma on 16 January 2012, a huge contingent of Indian Army had already moved into New Delhi for the 26 January Republic Day parade. Hence, no extra troops were required in any case.

Therefore, it is obvious that this great army is not in the business of military coups despite the wherewithal permanently at its disposal at New Delhi!

This was a false alarm purposely created to malign the Indian Army as the Army Chief and the Ministry of Defence were at loggerheads due to the General’s demand to rectify incorrect entry of his date of birth. Further, if the coup was actually taking place, the former Defence Secretary would not have had the luxury of leaking the information to a newspaper to create panic – he would have been effectively neutralised well in time because this is how a professional army executes its tasks. Despite the impediments created by politicians and bureaucrats in terms of paucity of young human resources and necessary equipment, the Indian Army remains extraordinarily professional in its approach of securing the nation’s borders.

The idea of a military coup, therefor, is preposterous and unthinkable in India!

A military coup is simply not feasible otherwise also as India has a federal structure where all the state capitals will be required to be simultaneously brought under the Indian Army’s control. This is not so in Pakistan where only Islamabad has to be taken over.

The continuous and gross neglect of the Indian Army and insulting behavior of the civil administration towards the military is, therefore, a matter of shame. It is time that the Army Chief asserts his dignity to restore the honour of this great army by demanding of the Prime Minister to institute an inquiry into the former Defence Secretary’s obnoxious behavior of creating the false alarm and heaping insults. The guilty must be taken to task.

This will help to quell the rising frustrations and anger within the rank and file of the Indian military.

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The views expressed are of the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions or policies of the Indian Defence Review.

About the Author

Bharat Verma

A former Cavalry Officer and former Editor, Indian Defence Review (IDR), and author of the books, India Under Fire: Essays on National Security, Fault Lines and Indian Armed Forces.

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13 thoughts on “The Fake Military Coup

  1. ALL SERVING GENERALS SHOULD HAVE GONE TO COURT IN UNISON BECAUSE IT DIRECTLY IMPINGES ON THEIR OATH TO PROTECT THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA . SINCE THEY WERE NEITHER INVOLVED OR PARTY TO THE SO CALLED COUP IMAGINARY OR OTHERWISE , THEY SHOULD HAVE FILED A CASE FOR BEING ACCUSED OF TREASON .THE GUILTY SHOULD HAVE BEEN BROUGHT TO BOOK.AS LONG AS ARMED FORCES OFFICERS ESPECIALLY THE FLAG RANKS BEHAVE LIKE WIMPS THE CHOR POLITICANS AND BABUS WILL KEEP TAKING THEM FOR A RIDE

  2. The entire episode is outcome of nothing but the immaturity of the former Defence Secretary Shashi Kant Sharma or else he must be drunk. At no time an no estimation in that matter was thought out by the government meaning that Mr Sharma was at fault.

  3. A closure in this matter is an imperative. But I doubt that there is any Judge or person in India with the credibility and stature to pronounce a closure.

    The Supreme Court (T. S. Thakur May 2016) has just “unfixed” Brigadier L. I Singh who was fixed by General Suhaag and General Bikkram Singh, taking advantage of the Supreme Court’s Complicity in fixing General V . K. Singh.

    An insight into the machinations and tentacles of the PANGOLIN* Parivar that loots together to stay together (Coalition Dharma).

    It is difficult to decipher. when a Learned and Honourable Indian Court passes any judgement, what the facts, law and merits of the matter might have been, as these seldom preoccupy or concern Indian courts. But the L. I. Singh case is a very interesting gossip on vindictiveness and law by “who” rather than “what” in the Indian Army which is fully reflective of India’s political and juridical ethos established since 1947.

    *Note: PANGOLIN: An enemy of India who believes in inequality under law, exceptions to the rule of law and persecution of some for the benefit of others. At present, the sole purpose of the Indian Republic, Constitutional or otherwise, is to pamper and provide for certain constitutionally preferred sections of society who the British found useful to hold and exploit India at the cost of those who the British hated and persecuted. The Pangolin is a creature that is unique to India and feeds on ants that are known in nature to be industrious and hard working if not quite as fruitful as bees who flee to better climes. (PANGOLIN is an acronym for the Periyar-Ambedkar-Nehru-Gandhi-Other (alien) Religions-Communist Consensus that usurped the British Mantle and has worn it with elan to loot, plunder, and rape India since 1921 and re write History and laws to their exclusive benefit since 1947)

  4. My salute to the author. Yes the matter must be investigated and those involved in orchestrating this false propaganda punished. That will have a saluting effect on the bureaucracy and will put end to such efforts in the future.

  5. The fact is that there was absence of maturity at the highest levels. The Defence Secretary should have talked to the Army Chief and asked about the exercise. His questions would have been answered. On the other side the Army Chief behaved in an unbecoming manner. He knew of the wrong declaration of his age when he joined the Army. He was physically and mentally mature enough at the time. As a Senior Officer he deliberately equated the denial of his request to be an ‘izzat Ka sawal’ for himself and the entire Army by implication. His behavior was unbecoming of an Officer. He should have known of the disquiet he was creating. The fault was on both sides. The sufferers were all citizens of india including our valiant soldiers and Officers of the forces.

  6. Send Babu Shashi Kant Sharma (or his son or nephews) to boot camp and post them to a place (my preference is Kashmir) where there is a real chance of them getting killed or maimed and I GUARANTEE that Babu Shashi Kant Sharma’s attention will be wonderfully focused on the Army’s well being.

  7. I think this military coup propaganda has much to do with the retired military aristaucracy who were opposed to General VK Singh.

    There is no need of an enquiry. No purpose would be served. General VK Singh has already retired. Soon the Defence Secretary would retire, if he has not retired yet. Then Anthony would be gone in May of this year, so what conclusions this enquiry would reach.

    We have a bit of ruckus in the army with serving officers split in two camps, one for VK Singh and other for the Current COAS. It serves no purpose to deepen the crisis any further. When the current chief retires, appoint somebody whose case is not being pushed by nobody. We have to keep the officer corp of the army competent and professional.

  8. The author is right in saying that the Chief needn’t get troops from outside for a coup. We are the third largest Army in the world, its a very powerful force and its a battle hardened Army. All the Chief has to do is to declare a coup and its done. So all the netas and babus who play sordid games better be careful. Indian Armed forces are a secular force with a high level of Integrity. Its a-political and doesn’t have political ambitions. In fact the Army abhors politicians and the IAS crowd. It would do well on part of this crowd not to provoke the Army – let it be and let it do its job.

  9. THE ARMED FORCES ARE SWORN TO PROTECT THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA EVEN AT THE COST OF THEIR LIFE AND LIMBS . THIS HAS BEEN AMPLY DEMONSTRATED DURING 1948, 62 , 71, 99 AND OPS BLUESTAR KASHMIR OR NE . THOUSANDS OF OFFICERS AND OTHER RANKS HAVE LAID THEIR LIVES FOR THE NATION. TO DEFAME , DISCOURAGE THE STRONG SERVICE CHIEFS FROM THE TIME OF GEN THIMMAYA, GEN BHAGAT FIELD MARSHAL MANEKSHAW, GEN SUNDERJI, AND GEN V.K SINGH THE DEVIOUS, CUNNING SCHEMING BABUS HAVE USED THE IMAGINARY CONSPIRACY OF COUP BY THE ARMY. IT IS A INSULT TO THE SERVING AND RETIRED MILLIONS OF SERVICE AND EXSERVICEMEN . HOWEVER THE ARMY SENIOR LEADERSHIP HAS NOT AQUITTED ITSELF WELL.IF ALL SERVING 90GENS HAD IN UNISON ASKED FOR A THREE JUDGE ENQUIRY THE SHAM WOULD HAVE BEEN EXPOSED . THE SENIOR INDIAN FORCES LEADERSHIP HAS TURNED SELF CENTERED, MEEK SUBMISSIVE AND CONNIVES WITH THE MOD BABUS FOR PERSONNEL GAINS AND PROMOTIONS . THE CLEVER BABUS USE THE STEEP PYRAMID TO PLAY THEIR WICKED GAMES WHICH A AVERAGE SCHOOL BOY CAN SEE THROUGH BUT THE SERVING LOT IS BLIND .THE IAS HAS MADE THE IPS
    INCOMPETANT, USELESS AND UNABLE TO PERFORM THEIR DUTIES BY MEDDLING IN THEIR TRANSFERS PROMOTIONS CRORES OF RUPEES CHANGE HANDS . RUMOURS OF SAME IN ARMY ARE OCCASSIONALLY HEARD .BY BREAKING THE BACK OF THE ARMED FORCES THEY WANT TO SUBVERT THE LEADERSHIP AND HAVE A IMPOTENT UNPROFESSIONAL POORLY EQUIPPED ARMY AND THEY APPEAR TO HAVE ALMOST SUCCEEDED. THE CORRUPT POLITICAL LEADERSHIP MUST STOP THIS BADGERING AS THE SUBCONTINENT STANDS DISINTEGRATION WITH REGIONAL ASPIRATIONS AND STRONG LOCAL LEADERS RISING TO DISOBEY DISCARD NATIONAL
    LAWS AND REGULATIONS . THE TAMIL NADU GOVT CASE OF RELEASING THE KILLERS OF FORMER LATE PM BEING THE CLASSIC CASE.

  10. The author is absolutely right. The entire episode indicates lack of knowledge of Fauji matters within even the top most echelons of Babudom, and fortifies the view held by defence professionals that a Generalist manning of MOD is disastrous for our national security.
    And to imagine that the GOI charters the Defence Secretary and Not the Chiefs, with the Defence of India !! Ha. Do you recall who was Defence Secretary in 1962? In 1999? Heads rolled?
    Does it not worry you that our own Home bred, Desi Generalists GOI functionaries with little knowledge of how matters Fauji work, are creating problems enough , to be of indirect use to our enemies?

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