Army In Democracy

What is civilian control of the military?
Armed forces were under the king
Who was usually a soldier himself.
Alexander commanded by virtue of his
Military abilities.
Napoleon was a soldier
Who became Emperor.
Where is “civilian” control?
That is something new.

II
Then came Democracy,
Checks and balances
And Separation of Powers.
People with no military experience
Like Barrack Obama
Who could mobilise votes
Became elected leaders.
In many countries
The Elected Head of State
Is Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces.
The power to declare war lies with the legislature
How to conduct it lies with the government.
Without military experience such a Supreme Commander
Works on the advice of a government.
This power is exercised indirectly through
The inherent powers of the Head of State.
This brings in a bureaucracy
Which should function legally and ethically.

III
In India serious issues come to a
Confrontation
In a ridiculous way.
Government misuses Air India
Does not even pay its pilots
And when they strike
Blames them for a mess it has created.
That is the only way the pilots can get paid.
The arrogance refuses to fade.

IV
There is a mess up about one entry
In a form by a young man
Nearly 40 years ago.
The documents we use to settle such matters
Are clear.
There was an error in that form.
That young man become
The Chief of Army Staff.
He tries to correct it.
But the written word
Even if erroneous
Is sacrosanct.
The bureaucrats who deal with these matters
Are insensitive, arrogant, adamant.
The error will prevail.
The officer is once told
Accept in 24 hours
We are right
Or the promotions of many will be out of sight.
Hobson’s choice.
He accepts
Then the Press goes viral
He is called a liar.

V
The Army Chief
Having exhausted all possible
Remedies
Goes to court.
People are horrified.
How can a serving General go to court
Against the Government?
He should ‘gracefully’ accept the
Erroneous Government decision.
Or he should first have resigned
So that the basic issue becomes
Irrelevant.
This is dignity.

VI
No one asks
How can the Government put up with its
Ridiculous ways
Against all evidence?
Only when cornered and under duress
Will it consider acting properly.
If this is what the Army Chief has to put up with
What is the plight of the more than million soldiers
In the Indian Army?
They face insensitive arrogance
From the bureaucracy every day.
It has now been challenged.
Legally and properly
It is good for our democracy.

VII
There will be twists and turns in this case.
Minor matters will be pontificated upon.
Whatever happens
Institutions are being tarnished
Because a few nameless bureaucrats
Are accountable to no one.
When will that change?

VIII
This is no overstatement or hyperbole.
Look at the ridiculous situation
The Government created
In the appointment of
The Chief Vigilance Commissioner
Not very long ago.
The adamant bureaucracy got away
Embarrassing the Prime Minister
And the entire Government was
Made a laughing stock.
And not for the first time.
It happened over the award of an
Honorary doctorate
To chess great Vishwanathan Anand.
This was embarrassing to the university
Wasn’t it reputation tarnished?
But the babus got away.
We never learn.
We must control the bureaucracy
For the good of the country.

IX
In the warrant of precedence
A Brigadier is equivalent to a
Deputy Commissioner.
One has 30 odd years of service
The other is a youngster in the civil service.
This is a symptom of what is wrong
It is not that we disrespect institutions
It is that we have an unaccountable bureaucracy
That exists only for itself.
And interferes everywhere.
This is Incredible India.

X
That Army Chief has done well
In fighting this issue.
He has shown he is a soldier
Fighting for honour.
Vested interests will criticise him
They may still hound him.
But he has raised his voice
On behalf of a million men
Kudos to the Chief
A true leader of men.