India it's first military victory in the last 1000 years
SPREAD MESSAGE OF INDIAN NATIONAL SECURITY TO AS MANY INDIANS AS POSSIBLE. LET US FREE INDIA OF CORRUPTION BY SPREADING THE MESSAGE TO AS MANY PEOPLE.MANY OF THE ARTICLES HAVE BEEN RECEIVED AS FORWARDED MAIL FROM VARIOUS FRIENDS . SHOULD SOME FACTS BE NOT CORRECT , YOU ARE REQUESTED TO PUT IT IN REMARKS BELOW THE ARTICLE. THIS WILL ENSURE A MORE BALANCED PERSPECTIVE OF THE SUBJECT DISCUSSED.
Saturday, 28 April 2012
INDIA AFTER 50 YEARS
Yes thanks to the vote bank politics! Already three districts in WB have turned Muslim majority due to influx of BDs.You are missing out on various districts of Bihar which have met the same fate due to same reason.
Hi! I wonder how many of us saw this thought provoking clip . As there are no comments - it is clear that most of us have not seen it. Well - in near future - Belgium is to become "Belgistan"; 'Democracy' is to be replaced by 'Shariat'. We can expect some turmoil in their immediate vicinity. Fifty years from today (most of us will not be there as witnesses) - India is heading for the same fate. Regards.
Thanks & regards
Friday, 27 April 2012
SIACHIN – NO SELLOUT PLEASE
By
Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi
Following the 1947-48 war between India and Pakistan, the Cease Fire Line (CFL), was delineated under the Karachi Agreement of 1949, only up to a point on the map known as Point NJ 9842. The area to the north, being highly inaccessible and glaciated, was not delineated, but the direction of the CFL beyond NJ 9842 was unambiguously stated as “thence north to the glaciers”. The same thing happened when the CFL was replaced by the LoC after the 1971 war.
In 1984, having received hard intelligence that the Pakistani Army was about to secure the area, the Indian Army in a pre-emptive move had occupied the Saltoro Ridge, which constitutes the watershed and runs parallel to the length of the Siachin Glacier on its western side. It has been called the Actual Ground Position Line (AGPL) since then. The Pakistani Army made many attempts to throw us back, but all such attacks were repulsed. Having failed militarily, Pakistan decided that negotiations were a more pragmatic option. Discussions held so far have been unsuccessful as Pakistan has been insisting on their terms for a resolution, which are not acceptable to India.
The last highly audacious attempt at dislodge us from Siachin was made by the Pakistani Army in 1999, when Kargil and surrounding areas were captured by the Pakistani Army, with the aim of cutting off our supply routes to Ladakh and secure Siachin by this indirect stratagem. However, once again the bravery and courage of our troops saved the day and the Pakistani Army had to suffer an ignominious defeat.
Another pertinent fact that must not be lost sight of is that in 1963, Pakistan had unilaterally and illegally conceded the Shaksgam area, north of Siachin, to China.
MAP: COURTESY FRONTLINE
Since early April, following the major avalanche in the area occupied by the Pakistani Army, an orchestrated attempt is being made to bring the issue back in focus. A fair amount of media hype has been created, but it is based more on emotions and less on hard facts. There is need to understand the nuances of this dispute in totality, so that a pragmatic decision is taken and there is no sellout.
During the various rounds of talks between India and Pakistan, many myths have been created by spin doctors and those who are bent on getting the Indian Army to vacate the area. These need to be discarded. The important myths and realities are discussed below.
Firstly, the contention that Siachin and Saltoro have no strategic value is patently wrong. The reality is that if the Saltoro had not been occupied by our troops, Pakistan from the west and China from the east would have long since linked up, with the strategic Karakoram Pass under their complete control. The illegal ceding away of the Shaksgam Valley by Pakistan to China has completed the encirclement of this crucial area. It is only our occupation of the Saltoro, which has driven a wedge between the two. By our control of Saltoro, we have also retained the option of negotiating with China about the Shaksgam valley at the appropriate time.
Secondly, the Pakistani stance that since India is the aggressor, it should vacate the area, is a travesty of truth, as what our troops did in April 1984 was to occupy our own areas; no border or line was crossed as the entire area, not having been delineated, belongs to India.
Thirdly, it is stated that unnecessary casualties are being incurred on account of the treacherous terrain and climate. This is no longer the case with us, as the Indian Army has learnt its lessons well and we do not have such casualties any more. Fourthly, an additional reason stated is that four to five crores is being spent everyday on our troops there. While the figure may be disputed, should sovereignty be measured in this manner?
The Siachin issue is important for the peace process, but there are many others that are more important and pressing, which need to be resolved first. We seem to have fallen for the Pakistani ploy of looking at Siachin as a separate issue, unrelated to the LoC, when de facto it is an extension of the LoC. Pakistan’s compulsion on the issue must not translate into a sellout by India, for it will be an unmitigated disaster if it happens. After all, the trust deficit with Pakistan remains, as it has taken no action on the concerns of India, like stopping support and assistance to the Jihadi insurgents, punishing the guilty of the Mumbai Mayhem and the continued sheltering of criminals like Hafiz Saeed and others.
The most important point we have to keep in mind is that while it suits Pakistan to get our troops to vacate the commanding heights of the Saltoro Ridge, we would lose them permanently if we do so, as regaining them would be militarily extremely difficult. Despite this, if there is a compulsion to resolve the issue, then the first action must be to delineate the AGPL, before any shifting of troops takes place. Pakistan has so far refused to accept this, perhaps with an ulterior motive of occupying it at some future date!
Pakistan has been proposing that both sides should withdraw to positions that existed prior to the occupation of the Saltoro Ridge, but this must not be accepted as our troops will take longer to return to their positions, should this become necessary, on account of the difficult terrain on our side. There is also a need to work out a detailed joint mechanism to ensure that the terms of the resolution are strictly adhered to.
A fitting tribute to the man who gave India it's first military victory in the last 1000 years
Finally, a fitting tribute to the man who gave India it's first
military victory in the last 1000 years----Article from The Pioneer.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author: Ashok K Mehta
Today at a special ceremony at the Zoroastrian Parsi Cemetary at
Ootacamund, Nilgiris, India’s first Field Marshal and one who bestowed
on the country its first military victory in a thousand years, Sam
Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw, will be commemorated by laying
his gravestone next to that of his wife, Siloo.
Rectifying the grave error of not according appropriate protocol on
June 27, 2008, when Field Marshal Manekshaw died at Wellington
Military Hospital, this time Defence Minister AK Antony will be
present. Also attending the wreath-laying ceremony are Chief of Army
Staff General VK Singh; Army chief designate Lt-Gen Bikram Singh;
VCOAS Lt-Gen SK Singh; president of the Gorkha Brigade and from Sam’s
own 8 Gorkha Rifles, and officers of the other two services.
“This is a very private occasion but the Army has been kind to help us
with the military ceremonial which my father always relished,” said
Maja Daruwalla, younger daughter of Sam and Siloo. Sam’s gravestone
bears the inscription: “It is a Life Well Lived” with Siloo’s reading
“Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds”. The combined inscriptions
encapsulate their lives — well lived and spreading goodwill.
The Government was very niggardly in recognising Sam’s unprecedented
achievements: Stemming the rot in 4 Corps after the catastrophic
debacle in the high Himalayas, Sam saying: “Gentlemen, there will be
no more withdrawals”; deterring the Chinese in Eastern Command during
the 1965 war; and comprehensively defeating the Pakistan Army in East
Pakistan in 1971.
But for Mrs Indira Gandhi, Sam would not have been made a Field
Marshal in 1973 as Defence Minister Jagjivan Ram and the bureaucracy
had opposed it. At the time, the Army had suggested that the Field
Marshal’s appointment should be equated with Bharat Ratna. But this
was turned down. Mrs Gandhi promised to make him the Chief of Defence
Staff, but the offer evaporated mysteriously. He was sent home unsung,
officers being forbidden to see him off in the special train from
Delhi to Coimbatore.
The Government’s loss was the corporate world’s gain. He was on the
board of a dozen private companies like Britannia, Bombay Burma,
Harrison Malyalam, Nagarjuna Fertilisers and the Oberoi Group. A
charismatic personality and gift of the gab made the Field Marshal Sam
Bahadur to his Gorkhas who were with him all the time that he lived
and died in Coonoor.
He won his Military Cross in the Battle of Sittang in 1942 — so
spectacular was his action that GoC 17 Infantry Division Maj Gen Punch
Cowan, thinking his wounds were fatal, pinned his own MC on Sam’s
chest. He was awarded Padma Bhushan in 1968 and after 1971, Padma
Vibhushan. The Padma series of awards for the military was soon
stopped on the advice of the bureaucracy.
His lectures on leadership are stuff of legend and laced with
illustrations from his career and peppered with humour. My favourites
are: “My trouble is, I have too much energy and I don’t know what to
do with it. I keep thanking the almighty for making a man out of me
and not a woman. If I’d been a woman, since I cannot say no, I would
have always been in trouble. I’d either be in the maternity home or on
the pill.” The other: “Whoever says he knows no fear is either lying
or a Gorkha.”
Two years from now, Sam would have turned 100. The Government must
make him a Bharat Ratna as no one deserves it more than he — with a
life well lived!!!
Thursday, 26 April 2012
रणझुंजार कॅप्टन अशोक करकरे भाग ९ ब्रिगेडियर, हेमंत महाजन
1971 WAR IN PUNJAB : SECTOR WHERE CAPT ASHOK KARKARE FOUGHT
Strategically and politically the most important sector in Western. Command was that held by 11 Corps which was responsible for the defence of Punjab, Haryana and the Ganganagar district Rajasthan. The border from Pathankot generally runs south-west along the line of the river Ravi to just north of Ranian where it turns south till it meets the er Sutlej west of Ferozepur, From there the border roughly follows the line of the river Sutlej upto Sulaimane. As these rivers had, during the years, changed their courses frequently there were many areas on our side of the river belonging Pakistan and we had many areas on the Pakistan side.
These "enclaves", as they were called, presented a difficult defence problem as we shall see later. There was only one bridge over the river Ravi and two over the Sutlej leading from Pakistan to India. The bridge over the Ravi was at Dera Nanak, and those over the Sutlej were at Hussainiwala Sulaimanke. The distance along the border, from Pathankot in the north to border post 403 in Rajasthan in the north, was just over 700 kilometres. This area divides itself rally into 4 parts, the first facing north from Pathankot along the river Ravi, to about Ranian, the second facing westfrom Ranian to Hussainiwala on the river Sutlej near Ferozepur, third from south of the river Sutlej to Sulaimanke, and the last from Sulaimanke to our border post 403 in Ganganagar district of Rajasthan from which point Southern Command took over.
In 1947 when we attained independence the area south of Ferozepore was virtually a desert, very sparsely populated and with no communication whatsoever. However, after the partiti on a large number of displaced persons from West Pakistan settled there. In order to develop the area and provide the displaced persons means of livelihood, the Rajastan canal was built. With availability of the water the hardy, industrious Punjabis so developed the land that it became parts of Punjab and Haryana, growing bumper and cotton and studded with citrus groves. Along with canal came a network of roads, and thus it became possible for mechanized army to operate in this region. Therefore, this area could no longer be neglected & had to be defended.
So far our defences had been based on preventing attack by Pakistan either along the Grand Trunk Road to between Amritsar and Ferozepore. No troops had been allotted or were available for the defence of area south of the river Sutlej. During peace time it is an uphill and almost impossible task to get the government to increase of troops, however cogent the case may be.
By early 1971 it was clear that events in East Paki lead to a war and that something would have to be done about the defences south of the Sutlej. The government still baulked (as it is still not permitting the army to raise additional troops to defend the Indo-China border) at raising a division for the defence of this region but as a concession agreed to the raising of a Sector Headquarters called Foxtrot or "F" sector with a skeleton staff to carry out planning and control of troops in this region in April 1971. However, troops were still not available.
For the defence of this 700-kilometre border, 11 Corps had in peace time 15 Infantry Division to look after all the area from Pathankot in the north to, and including, the Grand Trunk Road opposite Amritsar, and 7 Infantry Division to protect the area from south of the Grand Trunk Road to, and including. Ferozepore. During the operations, 11 Corps had been allotted another division. 14 Infantry Division, who would take over the defence of Ferozepore and the area south of it as far as Kot Kapura. However, we were on the defensive and as 15 Infantry Division was rather thin on the ground one infrantry brigade from 14 Infantry Division had been allotted for the defence of the Ajnala area. So in the area south of Ferozepore there were in fact only two infrantry brigades.
Thus the deployment of II Corps before the operations commenced was, two infantry divisions, 7 and 15, the latter having five brigades and one armoured brigade north of the Sutlej river, and one division less a brigade between Ferozepore and Fazilka.
DUAL COMMAND & CONTROL OF BSF
In peace time the border between India and Pakistan is pro-tected by a series of posts manned by the Border Security Force (BSF), a paramilitary organization whose function is to prevent infiltration and smuggling. In order to accomplish this they are armed and organized more or less like army units and are trained up to company level military tactics. They also had a number of army officers, mostly retired, seconded to them. The Border Security Force personnel are basically policemen and policemen are not generally trained to withstand an organized attack by regular forces. These posts whose strength varied from one platoon (about 30 men) to a company (100 to 120 men) could prevent only minor incursions. In the 11 Corps sector there were thirteen such Border Security Force battalions deployed in small posts along the border.
As war loomed nearer, Headquarters Western Command started pressing that these battalions be placed under its command so that they could incorporate them in defence plans. However, this was resisted by the Border security Force and it was only on 14 October 1971 that the Border Security Force battalions were placed under our command. Even then the local Border Security Force Headquarters were not placed under Command of the army. The dual control is always problematic.
KALRA-KHEMKARAN AND FEROZEPORE SECTORS
The task of defending all territory south of Buchar headworks up to and including Ferozepore was the responsibility of 7 Infantry Division.
There were, south of the Grand Trunk Road, two main approaches for the enemy for capturing important towns in Punjab. These two axes of advance were known as the Kalra and Khemkaran axes. The third and the most important axis was the Lahore-Kasur-Ferozepore Road. As this was the chief artery carrying the international fruit trade from Afghanistan and Pakistan to India, there was constant traffic on this road.
7 Infantry Division was deployed to deny Pak attacks along these three routes. In view of the large frontage it had to cover. It was essential for the division to have reserves; so it was deployed north of the Sutlej with two infantry brigades forward and one in reserve, the reserve brigade, leaving one battalion west of the Sutlej at Hussainiwala.
7 Arty Brigade commanded by Brig R. S. Mahal consisted of 171, 172 & 174 Field Regiments, 35 Light Regiment, 60 Heavy Regiment 125 Div. Locating Battery, one troop 49 AD Regiment & two sections of 14 Air Op Flight. The 35 Med Regt. Moved from Pathankot on 14 August 71 and reached Ferozepur to join 7 Infantry Division on 15 August 71.
119 Light Bty was deployed in "OP CACTUS LILY" in Hussainiwala Sector on 07 Oct. 71. The rest of the Regiment was deployed in Khalara and Khemkaran sectors. From 03 Dec. to 17 Dec. the unit took part in war against Pakistan.
DEPLOYMENT OF 65 INFANTRY BRIGAGE (CAPTAIN ASHOKS BRIGADE)
65 Infantry Brigade was positioned to prevent ingress along the Kalra axis and 48 Infantry Brigade along Khernkaran axis, and 29 Infantry Brigade was held in reserve. For operations a brigade from 14 Infantry Division was to be inducted and located behind the Hussainiwala headworks to strengthen the defences and to ensure that no break through was possible along the Kasur-Ferozepore road.
172 Field Regiment, one battery 35 Light Regiment (Captain Ashok's battery), two batteries 60 Heavy Regiment were allotted to 65 Infantry Brigade. The artillery units provide fire support to the infantry battalions located in the defences. The artillery guns were located 3-4 kms behind the main defences. The battery was located at Khalra village.
65 Infantry Brigade, the northern most formation of 7 Infantry Division, was deployed between Buchar head works and Bherwal, and their main defences were based on the Marimegha drain which is about 5 miles from the border, with outposts on the border. Marimegha drain is a wet canal. 14 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles less two companies were located on the disused Upper Bari Doab Canal (UBDC) in the Kalra area as covering troops, while the main defences were held by 14 Rajput and 3 Madras. As they had to defend about 26 kilometres of ground, the brigage was very thin on the ground. The plan therefore was that, if attacked, the BOP's held by the Border Security Force would fall back and fill up the gaps in the main defences. The BOP was located right of the international border.
PREMATURE WITHDRAWAL BSF BOP
On 3 December 1971 teh enemy started shelling our outposts and the division, thinking that an attack was imminent, first thinned out the BOP's and then withdrew them in preparation for the expected enemy attack. The enemy were therefore able to advance and occupy the area vacated and make contact with the covering position held by 14 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles on the UBDC without opposition. They then started to probe our flanks. These probing attacks were however easily repulsed. When it became clear that this was no major offensive the formation regretted their earlier decision to withdraw their BOP's and decided to recapture the post of Chhina Bidi Chand which was then serving the enemy as a base.
As 65 Infantry Brigade had no reserves, 9 Bihar from 29 Infantry Brigade was placed at the disposal of the Commander 65 Infantry Brigade. The plan was 9 Bihar to replace 14 Rajput, one of his own battalions in the defences, and thus release 14 Rajput, who knew the area well for the attack. The relief was carried out one the 7th. Meanwhile on the night of 6/7, 14 Rajput patrols reported that Chhina Bidi Chand was held by a company of Pak Army only.
Captain Ashok was the forward observation officer (FOO) with 14 Rajput. As a FOO he was located with the attacking troops.
ATTACK BY 14 RAJPUT (Capt Ashok was the FOO)
14 Rajput mounted their attack at about the midnight of 7/8 December 1971 and captured the position by 2 a.m. The enemy immediately brought down intense artillery fire inflicting heavy casualties on our troops. Captain Ashok Karkare secured a captured enemy artillery radio set and through it misguided the enemy thereby diverting enemy artillery fire and saving casualties to our troops.
Capt. Ashok ensured that very accurate fire was brought on the Pakistani thereby making the task of 14 Rajput easy. However, 14 Rajput patrolling report proved incorrect, for afterwards it came to be known-that there was another enemy company in the area. 14 Rajput were counter attacked at 1.15 a.m. The attack was again beaten back. Capt. Ashoks artillery fire again proved decisive. At dawn the next day, 14 Rajput anxiously awaited arrival of armored squadron (14 tanks) & reorganization stores to help rebuild & consolidate their defences. The tanks never reached. The tanks that had been allotted to the battalion for the attack were on the wrong side of the UBDC and could not cross the canal and come to the battalion's assistance. At 7.15 am. the enemy launched second counter attack. Again this attack was repulsed. Captain Ashok's accurate arty fire again proved effective.
The enemy again counter attacked at 10.30 am, at which time the Rajputs withdrew. In the withdrawal 1 officer & 5 other ranks were killed, 1 JCO & 23 other ranks were wounded & 3 JCO's & 22 other ranks went missing.
Undeterred by the shelling and small arms fire captain Karkare directed own artillery in an accurate manner and was instrumental in repulsing the attacks. He continued to engage the enemy till our troops had extricated themselves from the position. While he was himself withdrawing, he was hit by a machine gun burst and killed on the spot.
Captain Ashok held on to the post & as FOO played a gallant role in covering the withdrawal of 14 Rajput. Ashok went to the extent of calling fire on the own post to keep attacking enemy at bay. Generally safety distance of 250 metres is kept when arty fire is brought down close to own troops in defences. Bringing fire on own defences when withdrawing is rarely done & is termed as DFSOS. It requires lot of courage as own fire on own post can hurt/kill arty FOO's located there. In the midst of heavy fire Capt AK Karkare displayed exceptional degree of intelligence and bravery by laying his hands on the enemy radio set and created confusion and mayhem on the enemy side. Despite being hit by a machine gun burst fire, he displayed unstinted devotion and absolute courage and continued directing fire on the enemy till he sacrificed his life in action at Sidhwan village on 08 Dec. 1971. On 20 Dec. 1971, body of Capt Ashok Karkare was received from PAK authorities and was cremated with full military honours. A richly deserved Vir Chakra (Posthumous) was conferred upon him on 26 Dec. 1971.
His bravery ensured that 14 Rajput suffered very less casualties. Had the tanks arrived & withdrawal was not ordered Chhina Bibi Chand may have remained in our hands. (CAPTAIN ASHOK's SECTOR)Tuesday, 24 April 2012
The Bofors story, 25 years after
“I knew what I was doing when I leaked the documents to you. I could not count on my government or Bofors or the government of India to get to the bottom of this.”
STEN LINDSTROM explains why he chose to turn whistleblower to CHITRA SUBRAMANIAM-DUELLA
Tuesday, Apr 24 , 2012
April 2012 marks the 25 anniversary of the Bofors-India media revelations, which began on April 16, 1987 with revelations on Swedish state radio. The Hoot presents an interview with the man who decided to leak over 350-documents to former Indian journalist Chitra Subramaniam-Duella, then with The Hindu and later with The Indian Express and The Statesman.
The documents included payment instructions to banks, open and secret contracts, hand written notes, minutes of meetings and an explosive diary. They led to the electoral defeat of an Indian prime minister and blew gaping holes into a Swedish prime minister’s record as a champion of peace and disarmament. Above all, they formed the basis for the first ever transfer of secret bank documents from Switzerland to India.
Sten Lindstrom is the former head of Swedish police who led the investigations into the Bofors-India gun deal.
In an interview to Subramaniam-Duella, he reveals himself as the Swedish Deep Throat and explains why he chose to turn whistleblower.
Q - Why did you decide to identify yourself now?
A – Twenty five years is a good land-mark. We have had some time for reflection. Now it is time to speak again. Corruption levels in the world are increasing. There is new business around corruption with companies selling products that measure corruption instead of questioning why it is there in the first place. In a world of shrinking resources and ruthless ambition, we have to ensure that survival instincts that brought us out of the caves do not push us back in there because of a few greedy people. I hope I can contribute to the global struggle against corruption by sharing what I know.
Q – Tell us something about yourself.
A – Like many Swedes of my generation, my wife Eva and I were raised in the best traditions of social-democracy. Swedes are a hard-working people. Equity and justice for all is something we hold dear and for which we have strived as a nation. We built our institutions, our political and social systems around principles that were gold standards. We led the world as much in business forums as in the social arena.
Q – Nostalgia?
A – No, I base myself on hard evidence that is even more relevant today than it was 25 years ago. We are still world leaders in many fields, but somewhere our guiding principles have fallen by the wayside. No one is against successful businesses and it can be done. Here in Sweden we have the Wallenbergs, in India you have the TATA group. These are global companies and institutions. Their business ethics and corporate social responsibility work is not a slide on a power-point. It is generations of hard work. Bofors was a good company. Their products were good. Unfortunately in the race to expand business, they resorted to illegal shipments, bribery and corruption. They claimed a tax-deduction for the money they had to pay as bribes.
In my long career as a police officer I have seen many things. What was shocking in the whole Bofors-India saga was the scale of political involvement in Sweden breaking all rules including those we set for ourselves. Bofors was a wake-up call for most Swedes who thought corruption happens only far away in Africa, South America and Asia. There was disbelief and hurt when they found that some of their top politicians, bureaucrats and businessmen were no better than others. The $1.3 billion deal with India for the sale of 410 field howitzers, and a supply contract almost twice that amount was the biggest arms deal ever in Sweden. Money marked for development projects was diverted to secure this contract at any cost. Rules were flouted, institutions were bypassed and honest Swedish officials and politicians were kept in the dark. Our former Prime Minister Olof Palme was talking peace, disarmament and sustainable development globally, while we were selling arms illegally, including to countries that were on our banned list. My office, the office of Hans Ekblom, the public prosecutor in Stockholm, our National Audit Bureau – everything was ignored. So was the Swedish tax-payer.
The Managing Director of Bofors Martin Ardbo had worked very hard for this deal. He brought over 900 jobs to Karlskoga where Bofors is headquartered for at least a decade. When the stories started appearing Ardbo was a shaken man. He knew that I knew that he had made a political payment even more secretly than the rest to close this deal. He told me he didn’t have a choice.
Q – How did the India angle in Bofors crop-up?
A – It was an accident. We were conducting several search and seize operations in the premises of Bofors and their executives. I have some experience in this area, so I asked my team to take everything they could find. In the pile were one set of documents to Swiss banks with instructions that the name of the recipient should be blocked out. An accountant doing his job asked why anonymity was necessary since the payments were legal. Bofors was unable to explain and then we found more and more documents leading to India.
Q – Looking back, what would you say are some of the lessons learnt?
A – There are several, but I could mention a few. The role of the whistle-blower is a part of democracy. When all official channels are clogged, you have to take a decision. We have a culture here that it is okay to blow the whistle. I have met other whistle blowers. I knew what I was doing when I leaked the documents to you. I could not count on my government or Bofors or the government of India to get to the bottom of this. My only option was to leak the documents to someone we could trust.
There needs to be a free and fair discussion in the media about itself. The media is the watchdog of our society – but who is watching the media? Most whistle blowers around the world leak information to the media because they feel they owe it to their country, their job or the position they are elected to.
Genuine whistle-blowers also expect the media to be responsible and according to me this means that the media has to understand the motives of whistle-blowers. Not everyone is driven by the same motive. This is where investigative journalism comes in. Every role has its limits. I cannot become a journalist, a journalist cannot become a judge and a judge cannot become a politician. Who controls the media, what are their interests? What happens if a reporter is also part of the management? Do journalistic ethics compete with business and political interests of the media organisation? Can an ombudsman be the answer? If not, let us all work together globally to find a solution we all respect and understand.
There is also a lot of debate in the world about the role of middlemen in arms deals. Some say they should not exist at all, others say they have a role. I believe they have a role insofar as marketing a product is concerned and they should be remunerated accordingly in a transparent way so that the cost to the buyer is not circulated as kickbacks. Where it becomes illegal and dangerous is when the ambit of their work includes paying politicians and bureaucrats and in some cases journalists to push their product. Once you are in their clutches, it is very difficult to extricate yourself.
Q – What is your view on Wikileaks?
A – All leaks have a motive and they play a role. Wikileaks went up to a point and it is welcome. I have not seen many instances of journalists or governments taking the leaks further to the next level. It is not enough for journalists to ask questions. In their privileged positions as watchdogs, they have to take the leaks further without fear or favour.
Q – With time and distance, how do you view your leaks?
A – I believe I did the best I could. I watched you work for almost one year before I took my decision to leak the Bofors-India documents to you. You were one of many journalists from India and Sweden as well as many politicians from India who visited me during this period. I was lectured to and told how to do my job. Many mentioned Rajiv Gandhi’s involvement and that the guns were duds hoping I would react. I am used to these tricks. I told everyone the guns were excellent. The problem was in the procurement process.
People trust people. Trust is built over time. The one and only visit by your former editor N. Ram of The Hindu to my office in whose presence I handed over the documents is a detail. I would have leaked the documents to you even if you had worked for any other newspaper.
The Hindu’s role in all this was that of a medium of communication. I met them because you insisted. I was disappointed. They published the documents as and when they wanted without any respect for the risks other people were taking to get the facts out.
The most explosive documents that involved the political payments were Ardbo’s notes and diary. The Hindu published them several months after they had them. In the meantime there was a serious difficulty. I got a message that my name was circulating in Delhi’s political circles as the whistleblower. This caused a lot of stress and difficulty for me. You will recall the month you were not allowed to call me while we investigated who leaked my name as the whistle-blower in India. There were consequences for me and my family. The Hindu seemed unconcerned.
Q – Any regrets?
A – No. I took an informed decision to give you the documents. But I will say this much - when newspapers think they are more important than the story, journalism suffers. When editors cross their limits, it can be dangerous.
Q - Tell us something about those days, people’s reactions, your difficulties.
A - People in Sweden were shell-shocked. Bo G Andersson of the Dagens Nyhetter (DN), Burje Remdahl and Jan Mosander of the Swedish Radio are investigative journalists of repute. They were exposing illegal sales of arms to eastern Europe, the middle-east, even Vietnam through Australia. There was total disbelief in Karlskoga. The Indian deal was the straw that broke the camel’s back because it showed that corruption had reached right to the top in Sweden and in India. They were very brazen about it. There was no evidence of any bribe being paid to Palme, but he and some of his ministers knew exactly what was going on.
Q- Quarter century later, any reflections on why Rajiv Gandhi’s name came up?
A– There was no evidence that he had received any bribe. But he watched the massive cover-up in India and Sweden and did nothing. Many Indian institutions were tarred, innocent people were punished while the guilty got away. The evidence against Ottavio Quattrrocchi was conclusive. Through a front company called A.E. Services, bribes paid by Bofors landed in Quattrocchi’s account which he subsequently cleaned out because India said there was no evidence linking him to the Bofors deal. Nobody in Sweden or Switzerland was allowed to interrogate him.
Ardbo was terrified about this fact becoming public. He had hidden it even from his own marketing director Hans Ekblom who said marketing middlemen had a role, but not political payments. Ardbo was also concerned about the role of Arun Nehru who had told Bofors in 1985 that his name and Rajiv Gandhi’s name should not appear anywhere. As the stories began to appear, Ardbo knew what I knew. He had written in his notes that the identity of N (Nehru) becoming public was a minor concern but at no cost could the identity of Q (Quattrocchi) be revealed because of his closeness to R (Rajiv Gandhi). He had also mentioned a meeting between an A.E. Services official and a Gandhi trustee lawyer in Geneva. This was a political payment. These payments are made when the deal has to be inked and all the numbers are on the table. I spent long-hours interrogating Ardbo. He told me Nehru was the eminence grise but not much more. He said often that he would take the truth with him to his grave. I met him a little while before he passed away.
Under pressure from Swedish and Indian media and with the threat of a cancellation of the contract hanging over them, Bofors sent its top executives to India with the one-point task of giving out the names. Nobody of any consequence received them.
Q– What was your experience with the Indian investigators?
A – The only team I met in early 1990 damaged the seriousness of my work and the media investigation. I met them on a courtesy call. They were in the process of filing a letter-rogatory (LR) in Switzerland. Without an official request from Switzerland, Sweden could not intervene. They gave me a list of names to pursue including the name of Amitabh Bachchan. They also told me they did not trust you entirely because you had refused to link the Bachchans to the kickbacks. During that trip to Sweden, the Indian investigators planted the Bachchan angle on DN. The Bachchan’s took them to court in the UK and won. DN had to apologise and they said the story had come from Indian investigators. I was disappointed with the role of many senior journalists and politicians during that period. They muddied the waters.
After the LR was lodged in Switzerland, I was waiting for the official track with India and Switzerland to begin. It never did. Whenever the public prosecutor Ekblom and I heard of any Indian visits to Stockholm, we would speak to the media expressing our desire to meet them. Can you imagine a situation where no one from India met the real investigators of the gun deal? That was when we saw the extent to which everyone was compromised. Many politicians who had come to my office claiming they would move heaven and earth to get at the truth if they came to power, fell silent when they held very important positions directly linked to the deal.
Q – Any final thoughts?
नक्षलवाद्यांपुढे कायमचे लोटांगण ओडिशातील बिजू जनता दलाचे आमदार झिना हिकाका यांचे अपहरण होऊन आता एक आठवडा लोटला आहे. गेल्या शुक्रवारीच बिजापूरचे आमदार आणि जिल्हाधिकारी भुसुरुंगस्फोटातून बालंबाल बचावले.तिघांचा बळी गेला.गतवर्षी ओडिशाच्या मलकानगिरीचे जिल्हाधिकारी आर. विनील कृष्णा यांचे अपहरण झाले होते आणि पाच नक्षल्यांना सोडावे लागले होते.दोन महिन्यांपूर्वीच सुरक्षा दलाच्या पाच जवानांचे अपहरण करण्यात आले होते...या सर्व घटना अगदी अलीकडच्या काळातील असतानाही, छत्तीसगड राज्यातील सुकना या नव्यानेच निर्माण झालेल्या जिल्ह्याचे जिल्हाधिकारी ऍलेक्स पॉल मेनन यांचे भरदिवसा नक्षल्यांकडून अपहरण करण्याच्या आणि त्यांच्या दोन अंगरक्षकांना ठार मारले जाण्याच्या घटनेने पुन्हा एकदा पोलिस आणि प्रशासनातील समन्वयाचा अभाव अधोरेखित झाला आहे. ओडिशात अपहरण झालेल्या सत्ताधारी बिजू जनता दलाचे (बीजेडी) आमदार झिना हिकाका यांचा निर्णय आता माओवाद्यांच्या "प्रजाकोर्टा'त होणार आहे.दिल्लीत वातानुकूलित दालनांत बसून कागदी घोडे नाचविणार्या अधिकार्यांना ‘ग्राऊंड रियालिटी’ माहीत नाही. ते आदेश करतात आणि अंमलबजावणीची जबाबदारी जिल्हाधिकारी, पोलिस अधीक्षक आणि तत्सम अधिकार्यांवर सोपवून मोकळे होतात. सरकारी योजना राबविताना किती धोके पत्करावे लागतात, हे या अधिकार्यांनी स्वत: त्या क्षेत्रात येऊन बघितले, तरच त्यांना खरी स्थिती कळू शकेल. ही समस्या केवळ छत्तीसगड, ओडिशा किंवा महाराष्ट्राचीच नाही,तर नक्षल प्रभावित असलेल्या सर्वच राज्यांची आहे..देशभर अपहरणसत्राची योजना ओडिशात यशस्वी ठरलेली अपहरण रणनीती देशभरातील नक्षल प्रभावित क्षेत्रात राबवण्याची सूत्रबद्ध योजना नक्षल्यांनी आखली आहे. अपहरणसत्राचा अवलंब करून तुरुंगात खितपत पडलेल्या नक्षलवादी सहकाऱ्यांची सुटका करून घेण्याची आणि अपहृतांना अत्यंत चांगली वागणूक देऊन प्रशासकीय तसेच राजकीय वर्तुळात चळवळीविषयी सहानुभूती निर्माण करण्याचीही नक्षलवाद्यांची योजना आहे. नक्षलवादी चळवळीचे अनेक म्होरके सध्या महाराष्ट्रातील तुरुंगात आहेत. यात महाराष्ट्र राज्य समितीचा सचिव मिलिंद तेलतुंबडेची पत्नी अॅन्जेला, जहाल नक्षलवादी श्रीकांत, वर्णन गोन्सालवीस, मारोती पुनवटकर यांच्यासह अनेकांचा समावेश आहे. यांच्या सुटकेसाठी या राज्यातसुद्धा नक्षलवादी हा अपहरणाचा प्रयोग राबवू शकतात .सुरक्षा दलांची कोंडी महाराष्ट्रातल्या गडचिरोली जिल्ह्यातल्या नक्षलवाद्यांशी सामना करणाऱ्या, सुरक्षा दलाच्या गस्ती तुकडीवर झालेल्या हल्ल्यात 15 जवानांचे बळी गेल्याची घटना गेल्याच महिन्यात झाली. गेल्या पाच वर्षात या जिल्ह्यात नक्षलवाद्यांचा प्रभाव अधिकच वाढला. हा सर्व भाग घनदाट जंगलाचा असल्यामुळे आदिवासी आणि पोलिसांच्यावर हल्ले करून नक्षलवादी जंगलात पळून जातात. त्यांनी आदिवासींच्यावरही प्रचंड दहशत निर्माण केली आहे. आपल्या हालचालींची माहिती पोलिसांना दिल्याच्या संशयावरून नक्षलवाद्यांनी भरदिवसा, आदिवासींचे मुडदे पाडलेले आहेत. जिल्हा परिषदेच्या निवडणुकीच्या धामधुमीत कॉंग्रेसचे कार्यकर्ते असलेल्या पंचायत समितीच्या माजी सभापतीचाही खून नक्षलवाद्यांनी केला होता. चारच दिवसांपूर्वी भामरागड परिसरातही नक्षलवाद्यांच्या विरोधात काम करणाऱ्या राजकीय कार्यकर्त्याचा खून त्यांनी केला. नक्षलवाद्यांशी लढणाऱ्या सुरक्षा दलाच्या जवानांना मात्र तांत्रिक सुविधा अद्यापही मिळालेल्या नाहीत. पावसाळ्याचे चार महिने गडचिरोली जिल्ह्यातील बहुतांश भागाचा बाह्य जगाशी संपर्क तुटतो. सुरक्षा दलाच्या जवानांच्या जंगलातील छावण्यातही पिण्याचे पाणी आणि अन्य सुविधा पुरेशा नाहीत. छत्तीसगढ राज्यात मात्र, त्या राज्य सरकारने संचार निगमला धारेवर धरून नक्षलग्रस्त भागात जलदगतीने मोबाईल टॉवर्सची उभारणी तातडीने करायला लावली. यासाठी त्यांना कोरापूट जिल्ह्यातील नारायणपटना परिसरातील दुर्गम भागात नेण्यात आल्याचे समजते. अशी एखादी घटना घडली म्हणजे सर्वानाच धोका आहे असेही मानण्याचे कारण नाही. पण या भागात नक्षलवाद्यांच्या प्रभावाचा बाऊ करून दुर्गम भागात काम न करणाऱ्या अधिकारी व कर्मचाऱ्यांची संख्या सुद्धा गेल्या काही वर्षांंत कमालीची वाढलेली आहे. शिक्षक, तलाठी, कृषी व आरोग्य सहाय्यक, डॉक्टर हे गावपातळीवर महत्त्वाचे समजले जाणारे प्रशासनाचे घटक दुर्गम भागात जातच नाहीत. नक्षलवाद्यांच्या नावाने मिळणारा प्रोत्साहनभत्ता मात्र या साऱ्यांना हवा असतो. भीतीचा बागुलबुवा निर्माण करून कर्तव्यात कसूर करणाऱ्या या साऱ्यांचे आता ओडिशाच्या घटनेच्या निमित्ताने चांगलेच फावले आहे. पोलिसांच्या जगण्या-मरण्याची किंमत नाही
पोलीस आणि सुरक्षा दलाच्या जवानांनी आपले प्राण पणाला लावून व प्रसंगी ते खर्ची घालून खुँखार नक्षलवाद्यांना पकडायचे आणि प्रथम न्यायालयांनी व प्रसंगी सरकारने कोणत्या ना कोणत्या फुटकळ कारणाखातर त्यांची सुटका करायची हा प्रकार जनतेएवढाच पोलिसांनाही असह्य होणारच होता. ओडिशा सरकारने एक इटालियन प्रवासी व एक आमदार यांच्या सुटकेच्या मोबदल्यात पन्नासाहून अधिक नक्षलवाद्यांना तुरुंगातून मुक्त करण्याची चालविलेली केविलवाणी धडपड हा त्या राज्याच्या पोलिसांच्या संतापाचा सध्याचा विषय आहे. आम्ही जिवाची बाजी लावून जी माणसे पकडली त्यांना तुम्ही असे सोडणार असाल तर आम्हीच यापुढे नक्षलग्रस्त भागात काम करणार नाही असे त्या राज्याच्या पोलीस संघटनेने सरकारला जाहीरपणे बजावले आहे. तेवढय़ावर न थांबता तुम्ही नक्षलवाद्यांना सोडणार असाल तर त्या क्षेत्राशी व कामाशी संबंध असलेली कोणतीही जबाबदारी आम्ही स्वीकारणार नाही असेही तिने म्हटले आहे. पोलिसांचा हा संताप नुसता रास्तच नाही तर न्याय्यही आहे. ओडिशाचे सरकार ज्या चेंडाभूषणम या नक्षली पुढार्याला या देवाणघेवाणीत सोडायला निघाले आहे त्या दहशतवाद्याने आजवर ५५ पोलिसांचे प्राण घेतले आहे.केरळच्या एका माजी पोलीस महानिरीक्षकांना त्यांच्या हातून एका चकमकीत कित्येक वर्षांपूर्वी मारल्या गेलेल्या एका नक्षलवाद्याच्या खुनाचे आरोपी ठरवून त्यांना वयाच्या ८0 व्या वर्षी जन्मठेपेची शिक्षा सुनावण्यात आली तेव्हाच पोलिसांच्या जगण्या-मरण्याची फारशी किंमत नाही हे सार्यांच्या लक्षात आले.नक्षलवादी नेत्यांना अटक झाली की, कुणाला तरी पळवून न्यायचे किवा ओलिस धरायचे ही नक्षलवाद्यांची यापुढे कार्यपध्दती ठरण्याची शक्यता आहे. तसे झाले तर आपण याच पध्दतीने वागणार आहोत का? तसे झाले तरी नक्षलवादी उच्छाद कधीच संपणार नाही, हे लक्षात घेतलेले बरे. ही लढाई खूप वेळ लढावी लागणार आहे. त्यासाठी महाराष्ट्र सरकारची तयारी दिसत नाही. गेली ३०-३५ वर्षे राज्यात नक्षलवादी आहेत आणि महाराष्ट्र सरकार त्यांचा असाच 'बंदोबस्त' करणार असेल तर पुढची शंभर वर्षे नक्षलवादी असेच उपद्रव देत राहतील
पोलीस आणि सुरक्षा दलाच्या जवानांनी आपले प्राण पणाला लावून व प्रसंगी ते खर्ची घालून खुँखार नक्षलवाद्यांना पकडायचे आणि प्रथम न्यायालयांनी व प्रसंगी सरकारने कोणत्या ना कोणत्या फुटकळ कारणाखातर त्यांची सुटका करायची हा प्रकार जनतेएवढाच पोलिसांनाही असह्य होणारच होता. ओडिशा सरकारने एक इटालियन प्रवासी व एक आमदार यांच्या सुटकेच्या मोबदल्यात पन्नासाहून अधिक नक्षलवाद्यांना तुरुंगातून मुक्त करण्याची चालविलेली केविलवाणी धडपड हा त्या राज्याच्या पोलिसांच्या संतापाचा सध्याचा विषय आहे. आम्ही जिवाची बाजी लावून जी माणसे पकडली त्यांना तुम्ही असे सोडणार असाल तर आम्हीच यापुढे नक्षलग्रस्त भागात काम करणार नाही असे त्या राज्याच्या पोलीस संघटनेने सरकारला जाहीरपणे बजावले आहे. तेवढय़ावर न थांबता तुम्ही नक्षलवाद्यांना सोडणार असाल तर त्या क्षेत्राशी व कामाशी संबंध असलेली कोणतीही जबाबदारी आम्ही स्वीकारणार नाही असेही तिने म्हटले आहे. पोलिसांचा हा संताप नुसता रास्तच नाही तर न्याय्यही आहे. ओडिशाचे सरकार ज्या चेंडाभूषणम या नक्षली पुढार्याला या देवाणघेवाणीत सोडायला निघाले आहे त्या दहशतवाद्याने आजवर ५५ पोलिसांचे प्राण घेतले आहे.केरळच्या एका माजी पोलीस महानिरीक्षकांना त्यांच्या हातून एका चकमकीत कित्येक वर्षांपूर्वी मारल्या गेलेल्या एका नक्षलवाद्याच्या खुनाचे आरोपी ठरवून त्यांना वयाच्या ८0 व्या वर्षी जन्मठेपेची शिक्षा सुनावण्यात आली तेव्हाच पोलिसांच्या जगण्या-मरण्याची फारशी किंमत नाही हे सार्यांच्या लक्षात आले.नक्षलवादी नेत्यांना अटक झाली की, कुणाला तरी पळवून न्यायचे किवा ओलिस धरायचे ही नक्षलवाद्यांची यापुढे कार्यपध्दती ठरण्याची शक्यता आहे. तसे झाले तर आपण याच पध्दतीने वागणार आहोत का? तसे झाले तरी नक्षलवादी उच्छाद कधीच संपणार नाही, हे लक्षात घेतलेले बरे. ही लढाई खूप वेळ लढावी लागणार आहे. त्यासाठी महाराष्ट्र सरकारची तयारी दिसत नाही. गेली ३०-३५ वर्षे राज्यात नक्षलवादी आहेत आणि महाराष्ट्र सरकार त्यांचा असाच 'बंदोबस्त' करणार असेल तर पुढची शंभर वर्षे नक्षलवादी असेच उपद्रव देत राहतील
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