Veekay's articles

Monday, December 29, 2025

VEEKAY’S NEWSLETTER -2025 Dear Friends, It is time to update all of you about my activities during the year. For the last several years I have been beset with problems concerning my health and my legal cases. The health issues are perhaps unavoidable, since age is catching up, as it does for everyone else. But the legal issues are an additional burden that not everyone faces at my age. I have crossed the 81st milestone in June, and am now classified a super senior citizen during my visits to hospitals. In addition, there are many domestic issues that are a cause for stress, but this happens in almost all families. In June 2021, I underwent a surgical procedure in the Indian Spinal Injuries Centre during which an implant was put in my back, comprising eight rods, ten screws and two cages. Everything seemed to go off well until it was discovered that two screws had become loose and one cage had shifted. This naturally causes some pain and considerable discomfort. It has severely affected my mobility, indoors and outdoors. I now need some support to get up from a chair, climb even one or two steps and walk around the house. For visits to the hospital or get-togethers, I have to use a wheel chair, which I carry in my car. I need a driver to drive long distances and in crowded areas. These problems have been mitigated to some extent by an attendant, who has been employed on a 24 hour basis. The problem is that most of them don’t stay for long and have to be changed frequently. Another issue was a urological problem due to enlargement of the prostate. I had to undergo surgery, known as TURP on 30th Dec 2024 in Artemis Hospital. Due to various reasons, the problems continued. I visited several urologists in different hospitals. There was little they could do except install a catheter for a week or two. Finally, my good friend – he is also my schoolmate and course mate – Maj Gen AJB Jaini suggested that I should consult Dr SK Rawal, the Head of Urology in the Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute. I told him that I do not have cancer, but he insisted, since he was taking treatment from him for a similar ailment. In May I did that. On meeting Dr Rawal I discovered that he was a student of my cousin Dr RP Sahi, a renowned surgeon, in KGMC Lucknow. Dr Rawal praised him to high heavens and we spent a lot of time talking about him. He then got a cystoscopy done. He told me that my bladder had developed pouches and its walls are weak. He advised me not to fret and live with it. That is what I am doing now. There are several other health issues but I will skip them, since almost everyone of our age faces such problems. One as to live with them and that is what I have decided to do now. Coming to the legal problems, the most important one relates to the case filed against me by the CBI at the behest of RAW for writing the book titled India’s External Intelligence – Secrets of the Research & Analysis Wing (RAW) published in 2007. (The guys in that organisation insist that the abbreviated form is R&AW, but I have found that in the notification issued for its creation it was written as RAW). The book exposed the corruption, indiscipline and lack of accountability in the spy agency, which resulted in serious lapses in our security. Piqued by the exposure of their names, the sleuths convinced the authorities to slap a case against me under the Official Secrets Act of 1923. I had filed a petition in the High Court in 2008 to quash the FIR and charge sheet. Arguments in the case were closed and the judgement reserved on 11/8/2017. However, the judgment was pronounced only on 31/5/2023, more than five years after it was reserved. As expected, the petition to quash the proceedings was dismissed. Commander Mukesh Saini, a retired naval officer who is himself involved in a case under the OSA, introduced me to a senior counsel in the Supreme Court who was well known to him. I met the lady counsel along with Saini who felt that the case in 100% winnable. Somehow I got carried away by his confidence. The SLP was prepared by the Advocate on Record in consultation with Saini. The hearing was held in the Supreme Court on 25/9/2023. It was dismissed in less than five minutes. The judges refused to hear the arguments of the counsel. As a consolation they ordered that if we file an application for discharge, the trial court will not be influenced by the High Court judgement. This is not the only case that I lost. Based on an application from me, the CMM had ordered that copies of all documents connected with the case be given to me to prepare my defence. The CBI promptly appealed against this order in the High court in 2010. They submitted that the documents are very sensitive and giving copies to me would endanger national security. This case was also decided recently. The judge ordered that copies of documents would not be handed over to me or my counsel, but we will be allowed to examine them whenever required. Since no copies will be given, we are expected to have photographic memories to remember each word of the documents which may run into thousands of pages. Prashant Bhushan who had filed the petition to quash the case in 2008 again came to my rescue. We filed an SLP (special leave petition) in the Supreme Court against the order of the High Court. It was heard on 12/12/2025. I attended the hearing by VC. A two judge bench comprising JK Maheswari J. and Vijay Bishnoi J. issued a notice to the CBI returnable in four weeks. So there is some light at the end of the tunnel. The cases in the National Consumer Commission and RERA are still going on – after all the dictum Tarikh pe Tarikh has to be followed. The members of these tribunals, like judges, are not accountable to anyone. The Consumer Protection Act lays down that all cases will be decided in five months, but the members violate the law with nobody to question them. I have written twice to the Chairman of the NCDRC, but there has been no response. In fact these tribunals are now controlled by the lawyers, who grease the palms of the staff, to make sure that particular cases are always listed at the end, making sure it is not heard. I had noticed this many years ago in a case filed by me against the AWHO in the Delhi State Consumer Commission. After almost a dozen hearings I realised that my case will never be heard, as it is always listed at the end. In the next hearing I mentioned this when the court was about to rise. Justice JD Kapoor said that they have too many cases. I then asked him why cases filed after mine are being listed before my case. He went through the cause list and agreed with me. He promised that he will decide the case in the next hearing, which he did. Let us now turn to more pleasant subjects. This year, my friend Maj Gen Nilendra Kumar (he is an ex-JAG) requested me to take part in a podcast on certain personalities covered in my book Leadership in Indian Army – Biographies of Twelve Soldiers. The first few sessions were conducted in his house in NOIDA. Later, to avoid the long journey, we have been doing it by video conferencing. I find it very convenient since I can do it from home, using my laptop. He tells me that the feedback is very good. We still have a few personalities left, which we will do in the coming months. Another activity that I have recently started is reading Hindi books. I have got hold of six booklets having short stories written by Munshi Premchand, Rabindra Nath Tagore, Jai Shankar Prasad, Sadat Hasan Manto, Leo Tolstoy, and Maupassant. There is also a set of six paperbacks having novels and short stories written by Premchand, including Godaan, Gaban, Idgaah, Poos ki Raat, Thakur ka Kuan, Mritak Bhoj and many others. Of course, I had read most of these stories during my school days. One reason for my predilection for the writings of Munshi Premchand is that his grandson, Alok Rai was my class mate and best friend in school. Alok’s father, Amrit Rai, was himself a well-known writer, who got the Sahitya Academy Award for writing the biography of his father titled Kalam ka Sipahi. Alok’s mother, Sudha Chauhan was the daughter of the poetess Subhadra Kumari Chauhan, who wrote the poem Jhansi ki Rani. Alok and I appeared in NDA and IIT examinations together. We both qualified but he preferred an academic career. He went to Oxford on a Rhodes scholarship. He started teaching English in Allahabad University, then went to IIT Delhi and finally to Delhi University, from where he retired. He still lives in his father’s house, Dhoop Chhanh, in Allahabad. We rarely meet now, but keep in touch on WhatsApp. Due to my restricted mobility, we rarely go on sightseeing trips on Sundays as we did till about 15-20 years back. The same goes for the annual holidays in the hills. But I still attend course and unit reunions and get-togethers, as well as family functions. In early February this year we went to Jaipur for a week to attend the engagement ceremony of Bhumika (she is the granddaughter of my wife’s elder sister). Later in February itself we had a course get-together in Chandigarh, hosted by the course mates who live in the Tri-City. It was an extremely enjoyable affair. Unlike most of the others who stayed in a hotel in Zirakpur, I stayed in the N Area Mess, where my attendant could sleep in the adjoining room. The next GT is planned in Goa in February 2026. Since no one in Goa, Poona or Delhi was ready to organise the event, the Tri City dam busters, as our course is known, volunteered to take it on. Hats off to them. In January 2026 we also plan to go to Jodhpur to attend the wedding of Bhumika, whose engagement was held in February in Jaipur. Marriages in Rajasthan last at least a week and the ladies have to carry many dresses, which makes air travel difficult. So we have decided not to fly but drive down, perhaps with a halt at Jaipur. I was posted in Jodhpur in 1992-93 and used to frequently travel on this route, since my family was in Delhi, due to the children’s’ education. I was not entitled to SF accommodation, so my family stayed in Vasantkunj in a flat belonging to Chinu Mohanty. It was lying vacant so I requested him to let us stay for a nominal rent. He agreed and we stayed there for almost two years. A recent development that I find very disturbing is the increasing influence of politics in our lives. My father was not a politician, but he had a large number of friends and acquaintances who were. This was perhaps inevitable, since he took active part in the freedom movement and even spent some time in jail during the Quit India movement in 1942. After he joined the Police 1948, he did not take active part in politics. But his interest in the subject never waned. Politicians of all hues were frequent visitors to our house. Even after retirement, he was a regular visitor to the Coffee House or Benbows in Hazratganj, where he met his friends, many of whom were deeply into politics. During my leave, I often accompanied him on these trips and listened to their discussions concerning the developments in Delhi and Lucknow. But this did not affect his close ties with his friends and acquaintances. Today, the situation is totally different. There are divisions within families depending on political leanings of different members. Unfortunately, even the Armed Forces have been affected by this malaise. There is no closer bond than that between course mates in NDA and IMA. Sadly, these bonds are no longer as strong as they were. There are even instances of friendships being broken. This has affected the ladies and children too. It leaves one saddened. There is little one can do but lament at this development. Another remarkable change is the knowledge and awareness of children today. When we were young, we were not allowed to touch the radio, which was the only electronic gadget in the house. There was no TV, mobile phones, or computers. Today, kids know much more about these things than we do. In fact most people of our age have to ask our grandchildren to help us with these devices. How did this happen? Surely it is not due to better education in schools or enhanced IQ levels. I thinks social media has played a big part in this phenomenon. In our time, we had to read the Encyclopaedia Britannica to find out answers to many questions. Today, Google and Wikipedia provides the answers in an instant. Another new animal that has entered the cattle pen is AI (Artificial Intelligence). It can do anything and might soon control human beings, something we thought only God can do. I have still not been able to grasp how it operates. To tell the truth I feel it is better to remain ignorant of this monster, than delve into the intricacies of its behaviour. This is my 19th newsletter. Those who wish to read the previous newsletters can do so by logging in to my blog veekaysnewsletter.blogspot.com. My second blog that contains chapters from my books and articles on military history is http://veekay-militaryhistory.blogspot.com/. The third blog that has most of my articles is veekaysarticles.blogspot.com/. Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas and a Very Happy and Prosperous New Year. Vinay and Kumud Singh Tele: 0124-4074077 Mob: 9873494521, 9899110913 25th December 2025

Saturday, January 11, 2025

VEEKAY’S NEWSLETTER -2024

VEEKAY’S NEWSLETTER -2024 Another year has passed. Somehow, the years seem to pick up speed as one grows older. There was a time when one thought that he would never grow old. The only time one felt a wee bit older was when he became a grandfather or started using a walking stick. I have gone even further and need an attendant to move around. Most of my time is now spent in court rooms and hospitals, instead of clubs and social get-togethers. Holidays in the hills are now out of the question. I envy some of my friends who pay golf every day and round it off with the two mandatory chota pegs in the evening. But I try to attend all the get-togethers of the Dam Busters (as 26th NDA course is known) as well the 34th NDC course. The biennial reunion of the unit I raised in Hisar in 1982-85 is also de-rigeur. As usual, I will start with the legal cases that have been troubling me for the last 17 years, and then come to the medical issues, which have increased this year. All this took up most of my time, leaving very little for creative pursuits, like writing books or participating in literature festivals. Domestic issues have also taken their toll. These I will omit for the present and leave them for another day. With time such problems often solve themselves. The case filed against me by the CBI after publication of my book titled India’s External Intelligence – Secrets of the Research & Analysis Wing (RAW) published in 2007 is still going on and is unlikely to end soon. The agency at whose behest the case was filed has lost interest, but the lawyers will not allow the case to end – they are like daily wagers who get paid for every hearing. Another factor is that almost ten books have been written about RAW, most of them by officers who have served in the agency, including many erstwhile Directors. Even though some of these books are more explicit than mine, it is unlikely that the agency will prosecute them. I have been singled out because I was an ‘outsider’ and not one of their own. There are several other cases that I have filed in the Consumer Commissions, Central Information Commission and RERA. I had purchased a Nissan Terrano in 2016. Soon after I purchased the car I noticed that it had a design defect and could not be used in the Hills. According to the Certificate of Registration, the car has a 1598 cc petrol engine, unladen weight of 1261 Kg and gross vehicle weight of 1755 Kg. Hence, the load carried by the car including passengers, luggage, tools, accessories etc. should not exceed 1755 – 1261 = 494 Kg. According to the Owner’s Manual, the engine output and climbing ability are reduced with altitude. It recommends that the maximum load should be reduced by 10% at an altitude of 1000 metres and an additional 10% for each 1000 metres thereafter. Since most popular hill stations such as Shimla, Mussourie, Nainital etc. are at altitude of approx. 2000 metres, this will result in a weight reduction of 20% and the gross weight will be around 80% of 1755 = 1404 Kg only. Since the unladen weight of the car is 1261 Kg, the load that can be carried including passengers, luggage and tools will be only 1404 -1261 = 143 Kg. Obviously, the car cannot be used in the hills if is fully loaded, with five passengers and luggage. This is a serious design defect in the car, which is being sold as an SUV. After a lot of visits and to the service station I filed a complaint in the District Consumer Forum in Gurgaon in 2018. The case was dismissed by a subterfuge by the clerks in Forum. I then filed an appeal in the State Consumer Commission in Panchkula. After 18 hearings the case was dismissed. I then filed a case in the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Delhi. The case is still going on. In July 2024 I wrote a letter to Justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi, the President of the NCDRC pointing out some anomalies s under: In the hearing held on 02/07/2024 the counsel for the respondent, Mr Vipin Singhania, appeared without a Vakalatnama. He stated that he will be “shortly filing his Vakalatnama”. He was allowed to do so within three days. The case has been adjourned to 29/11/2024. I have a few questions: • If the lawyer for OP did not have a vakalatnama, why was he allowed to appear in the case? • Does it take three days to get a vakalatnama signed by the client? • Should a case be adjourned for 5-6 months for this purpose? • Section 38 (7) of the Act provides that “Every complaint shall be disposed of as expeditiously as possible and endeavour shall be made to decide the complaint within a period of three months from the date of receipt of notice by opposite party….”. Are we not violating this provision in the Act? I have noticed similar or worse anomalies in the State Commissions in Delhi and Haryana as well as the District Forum in Gurgaon. It appears that it is the lawyers who call the shots. This particular case was filed in 2018 in Gurgaon and has still not been decided even after six years. The Consumer Protection Act was enacted to protect the interests of consumers, not the lawyers. The next hearing was held on 28 Nov 2024. As expected, my case was listed at the end and my turn did not come. This has happened with me earlier in the Case filed by me against the AZWHO in the State Commission at Delhi. For almost two years my case was not heard because it was listed at end. When I brought this to the notice of the Registrar, he advised me to mention before The President at the next hearing. I did this and the President after going through the cause list assured me that he will decide the case in the next hearing which he did. Two other cases were filed in the Haryana State Consumer Commission by my daughter and son-in-law against a builder who has not delivered the flat in spite of the entire cost being paid. Seeing that there is no progress in the cases, we withdrew the cases in January and filed fresh cases in RERA in Gurgaon asking for a full refund. It is still going on with no end in sight. The spine surgery done in 2021 is still troubling me. I have to wear a brace and have to take baby steps while walking. Climbing stairs is difficult except with support. Even if there are 2 or 3 steps, I avoid climbing them unless there is a banister or railing. A problem often overlooked by us is the difficulty faced by the elderly while getting up from a low toilet seat. It can be solved by putting a handle on the wall next to the seat, which can be used as a support. I have advised many clubs and messes where I noticed this problem. One of the few who reacted promptly was DG Signals. I noticed this problem during a function in Vatika last year. Next day, I send a Whatsaap message to the ADGSS, Maj Gen Sunit Kumar along with a photograph of the handle. Within four days, the problem was solved and the handle installed. I wish other messes and clubs take similar steps to ease the life of elderly veterans. Another health issue I am facing now is an enlarged prostate. Tests have revealed that it is benign but my visits to the bathroom just don’t seem to stop. I have consulted the senior urologist in RR hospital as well as Colonel SV Kotwal in Artemis hospital. Both have advised surgery. My TURP is planned for 30 Dec. I hope all goes well. We are staying at Abhimaur Vikum in G-31, Palam Vihar in Gurgaon since 2004. We live on the ground floor while our son Abhimanyu lives on the first floor with his wife Jasmine and their son Bhuvanyu (22) and daughter Khushi (2). Bhuvanyu finished his studies from the College of Vocational Studies in Delhi University and is now working with a private company. Our daughter Mauravi and her husband Vaibhav are still living in Trinity Apartments in DLF 5, with their two daughters, Mriggya (22) and Eshaana (20). Vaibhav, a Captain in the Merchant Navy, is presently at home. Mriggya has graduated from the College of Jesus and Mary. Eshaana has got admission in college in Gurgaon This is my 18th newsletter. Those who wish to read the previous newsletters can do so by logging on to my blog veekaysnewsletter.blogspot.com. My second blog that contains chapters from my books and articles on military history is veekay-militaryhistory.blogspot.com. The third blog that has most of my articles is veekaysarticles.blogspot.com/. Wishing all of you a Merry Christmas and a Very Happy and Prosperous New Year. Vinay and Kumud Singh Tele: 0124-4074077 Mob: 9873494521, 9899110913 29th December 2024

VEEKAY’S NEWSLETTER -2024

Thursday, June 13, 2024

JUDICIAL PERFIDIES - RAVINDRAN

JUDICIAL PERFIDIES-32 One can continue to write about judicial perfidies till cows come home but it will be only repeating the same narratives with change in the names of the characters. The plot cannot change. It will remain the denial of justice by those who are tasked, empowered and paid to provide it. So, while the critiques can and will continue, there is a need to come to terms with the fact that one has only one life to live. Hence there is this need to wind up this series with a quick recap of the defects/deficiencies that have been brought out so far. And that should lead us to the solutions, implicitly or, if need be, explicitly. We are already familiar with these fundamentals of jurisprudence: ➢ Justice delayed is justice denied ➢ Justice should not only be done but seen to be done ➢ Not a single innocent person shall be punished even if a hundred criminals are allowed to go free and ➢ Capital punishment shall be awarded in the rarest of rare cases. But there are two even more fundamental principles that are not often spoken about: ➢ Your liberty ends where my nose begins and ➢ Justice implies two aspects: punishing the guilty and compensating the victim. My first experience with a court of law was neither as a complainant nor as a respondent to a complaint. It was merely for a court of wards permission to mortgage an ancestral plot of land on which I was constructing a house. But at the end of 4 years when I withdrew the application, the lessons I carried home were of the incompetence and arrogance of the judge and the lack of professionalism and servility of the advocate. My subsequent experiences with the judiciary have taught me that it is the judges who have made it so. Then I got stuck with a consumer complaint where I had got a favorable verdict from the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum (as it was then, now it is also a Commission). The opposite party had taken up the matter with the appellate body, the State Commission quoting a preposterous judgment of the Kerala High Court in Jancy Joseph Vs Union of India (1999 (1) KLT 422). There a single judge had ruled that women could not be arrested in cases involving recovery of money. This was a gender based discrimination and against the Constitution. It was done by applying Section 56 of the Civil Procedure Code (of 1908 vintage) to Section 27 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986. But he had aggravated the discrimination by ruling that others (read, men) could be arrested even if they had no means to pay, which was against the provision of the same Section 56 of the CPC. Since I was now a victim of this totally unjudicious verdict, I had to pursue another case in the High Court of Kerala, questioning the decision in Jancy Joseph. It took the High Court a year and half to dismiss this petition with a curt 2 sentence verdict: ‘This matter had been decided in Petition Number xxxx/yyyy and held against the appellant. Hence this petition is dismissed.’ My advocate while providing me copy of the order did not provide me the copy of the order quoted therein. The court had refused to provide a copy of the same even under the Right to Information Act, saying that it is part of judicial proceedings and cannot be provided as per the High Court’s RTI Rules. Some justice and transparency there! The appeals and revision petitions by the opposite party in the State Commission were also dismissed and after reverting to the District Forum the verdict was again given in my favor but with much reduced refund of cost and compensation without any valid reason. The total litigation lasted 11 years and it had cost me 4 times more than what I had lost as per my complaint. Later, I came to know that a division bench of the same court in Mary Chacko vs Jancy Joseph (2005 (3) KLT 925), in the context of application of the same Section 56 of the CPC to SARFAESI Act had taken a different stand and ordered that women can be arrested because 'there is a clear basis for treating the public dues different from the purely private'. Since then I have been left wondering under which law it is permitted to cheat ordinary citizens of justice. Meanwhile, in 2002, in an article - ‘Democracy? East is East and West is West…’- I first wrote about the need to have rule of law instead of rule of judges. The article is available at http://suchnaexpress.blogspot.com/2011/01/democracyeast-is-east-and-west-is-west.html. Much water has flown down our rivers but the need for a total overhaul of our judiciary has only got reinforced and reached a stage where citizens have begun to perceive the judiciary as a threat to rule of law and democracy. My letter to the Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court on 18 Nov 2004 had dealt with the following issues afflicting the judiciary: contempt of court (anathema in a democracy), judicial accountability and the need for a National Judicial Commission to try judges (for all omissions and commissions under laws applicable to all citizens), judicial accessibility, judicial process, listing of cases, personal appearance of litigants and representatives, involvement of advocates, citizens’ charter and working hours, grading of advocates and norms for fees and irrationality and unfairness of decisions. The contents of the letter are available at http://raviforjustice.blogspot.com/2011/02/reforming-our-justice-deliverysystem. html. This was followed by a one man satyagraha in front of the High Court which was disrupted by the police on the direction of the concerned official of the court. Some respect for freedom of expression which is tom-tommed by our judges who have flip-flopped even in the context of bandhs/hartals which have been bringing normal life to a standstill. Once it was rightly held that they are illegal because it affected the fundamental rights of other citizens but they retracted later. Even thereafter a judge made road side meetings illegal leading to a politician rightly calling him a dimwit. And for this comment he was punished for contempt of court with imprisonment for six months. On 31 May 2005 an online petition was initiated addressed to the President and Prime Minister of India to constitute a National Judicial Commission to try and punish judges as per laws applicable to ordinary citizens but with twice the severity in punishment. This petition was posted at http://www.PetitionOnline.com/jrandac1/petition.html which is now defunct. However, copy of the petition and the list, including the comments, of 429 citizens who had supported it are posted at https://www.slideshare.net/raviforjustice/310505-thepetition- toconstituteanationaljudicialcommission and https://www.slideshare.net/raviforjustice/310505thepetitiontoconstituteanationaljudicialc ommissionsignatures1to429 respectively. It is evident that the failure begins with the Constitution that has created this institution without any systemic checks and worse, provided armor to it through a blasphemously antidemocratic contempt powers. Imagine an employer of a company being made liable to punishment for calling out a non-performing employee. Did the architect(s) of our Constitution forget the very meaning of the term democracy? While a detailed analysis- ‘Report of the NCRWC- a Citizens Review’- can be read at http://raviforjustice.blogspot.com/2011/03/report-of-ncrwc-citizens-review.html, the following notes, by one of the two of the non-judicial members of the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution, are relevant: Dr Subash Kashyap, former Secretary General of Lok Sabha, had noted: 'While no comments are being made on what went wrong in the procedure, priorities and perspective, it may be put on record that several of the recommendations now forming part of the report go directly counter to the clear decisions of the Commission on which the unanimously adopted draft report of the Drafting and Editorial Committee was based'. Also, 'The Chapter 7 of the Report is titled 'The Judiciary'. This chapter particularly is seriously flawed and distorted. The much needed Judicial Reform issues have not been even touched or these got deleted in the final draft'? Shouldn’t this suffice to overhaul our judiciary, lock, stock and barrel? Right from the format of petitions to the complete process from registering a case to its conclusion, every aspect of our judicial functions needs to be reworked. The first issue that comes in the context of format of petitions is the content and details. Given that the petitioner is a layman and the judge is a qualified lawyer, shouldn’t it suffice if the petitioner just narrates the facts of the complaint in the petition? Shouldn’t it be the responsibility of the judge to evaluate it in the context of the laws, get clarifications if any (on the facts only) from the respondent and the petitioner and give a fair verdict? I read somewhere that both the parties to litigation know the facts, it is the judge who is on trial. How true. So, if the judge gives a verdict which is not only fair but also seen to be fair, it can be assured that there are no further appeals. This also brings us to the issue of having advocates representing parties and costs. For the simple reason that the judges are legally qualified persons, the need for advocates representing parties should be banned. This is mandatory for providing a level playing field. Fali S Nariman, a reputed Constitutional lawyer, in his book 'India's Legal system: Can it be saved?’, had rightly written that ‘For more years than I can imagine we lawyers have been using our lawyering skills not in a profession but in a game, in which the more skilful (which tends to become also the more costly), will invariably win.’ (I will request my law qualified friends not to take umbrage at this suggestion. The need is to have law qualified people practicing law as doctors practice health care. Nitty-gritties can be worked out) It is seen that quite often petitions are made bulkier by listing cases laws, most of which may not even have any bearing on the issues relevant to the case. In fact I have read at least one advocate, Mathew J Nedumpara, explaining tirelessly that verdict of a particular case apply only to the parties involved in the case (res judicata) and it is the principles on which decisions are made that make for precedents (stare decisis). It cannot be that principles keep changing with every other case. To begin with, case laws, older than 5 years should be declared invalid. Today, with advocates on both sides presenting some facts, some laws and some case laws, it appears that judges can easily toss a coin and decide whom to favor with his verdict. On the subject of principles on which decisions are made, it is interesting to note the flip flops in the court decisions. One of them ended with the establishment of a blasphemous basic structure theory. Here is an interesting report (‘Basic structure of the Constitution revisited’) at http://www.thehindu.com/2007/05/21/stories/2007052103301000.htm. It was followed by the constitution of an unconstitutional Collegium for the appointment of judges. This was done by resorting to a never heard of interpretation of the meaning of a common English word ‘consultation’. That it got entrenched through a series of judgments when the Executive at the Centre was weak cannot be mere coincidence. Coming to costs, there is no reason why this should not be free as rule of law is as important, if not more, than education and health which are practically free in government schools and health care centers. Regarding the conduct of trials and verdict, it is of utmost importance that cases are disposed of on first come first served basis. Of course it will apply only to similar type of cases. So time frames have to be laid down for each category of cases and enforced. Some flexibility can be provided like giving, say, 10 percent extra time for 10 percent cases, on a case by case basis, by a superior court. Any default should be dealt with seriously and severe or repeated default should result in termination of the services of the judge. The need for day to day trials, once charge sheet is submitted, cannot be overemphasized. Not only are the facts fresh in the minds of the parties and witnesses, it is also easy for the judge to correlate them and come to rational and fair conclusions. I have read of the apex court mandating that verdicts should be delivered within 6 months of the conclusion of arguments. But I know of high court judges being elevated to the apex court even when they have failed to deliver judgment for 4 years after final arguments and moved to the higher court without delivering it, leaving the litigant in the lurch. Even at the end of preposterously prolonged trials it can be seen that the verdicts are not seen to be fair. There are many cases where trial courts have sentenced the guilty to death and the apex court exonerating them or reducing the sentence to life imprisonment after the convict has already spent a life term or more as an under trial. With all sentences ordered to be running concurrently the convict is soon out as a free bird to get back to his vocation as a criminal. The other day I was reading a report, ‘US: 54-year-old man rapes a 14-year-old girl multiple times, sentenced to 50 years in jail and physical castration’ (29 April, 2024, https://www.opindia.com/2024/04/usa-louisiana-rape-castration-minor/). I wonder why and under what laws are our courts prescribing that all punishments should run concurrently when the investigating authorities and prosecuting authorities have worked day and night to prove every charge from conspiracy through planning to executing a crime of murder? Incidentally, in the case of a judge who died in an accident the trial court itself had sentenced the guilty to life imprisonment till death. One report is at https://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-dhanbad-judge-murder-court-says-culprits-mustremain- in-jail-till-end-of-life-2976352. Interestingly the report does not mention any motive or previous history of conviction in any crime for those sentenced. Contrast this with the case of murder of a primary school teacher in Kerala in front of his students by a mob and six of the accused being sentenced to death. Even after the High Court upheld the verdict, years later, the apex court acquitted 5 of them and commuted death to life imprisonment for the sixth. Just imagine the plight of those acquitted living with the threat of death for more than a decade. Did the apex court act against the judges who sentenced them to death? Did the court order action against the investigating officers and prosecutors? Did the court order apprehension of the others involved? My study of the performance of our judiciary over the last 25 years has made me doubt not only the competence of our judges but even their integrity. The instances of misuse of power are plenty but the situation is worse now what with 85 percent of the judges in the Supreme Court being kith and kin of former judges or senior judicial officers, as per a list released by National Lawyers’ Campaign for Judicial Transparency and Reforms. Incidentally, the apex court that had illegally trashed the duly enacted National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, had, during the Emergency days, used an amendment to the Constitution (39th amendment to the Constitution, 10 Aug 1975) to exonerate the then Prime Minister Indira Gandi who had been earlier convicted in an electoral malpractice case by the Allahadbad High Court (State of Uttar Pradesh v. Raj Narain, 1975 SCR (3) 333). Imagine the horror of it. A convict allowed to amend the Constitution in her favour and the apex court accepting that amendment to exonerate her. If this is not turning law on its head then what could it be? Of course such cases cannot happen routinely but what about the principle of conviction being based on the laws existing at the time of occurrence? Whether it was a Chief of Army Staff’s date of birth or an employee seeking pension that had been denied to him or the entry of women in Sabarimala, incompetence of the judges is writ large on the verdicts. When the School Leaving Certificate is the accepted proof of date of birth I cannot understand how a court can accept an error in an application form to be authentic and not accept the date in the School Leaving Certificate produced as supporting document. And the court never asked why a Lt General, on the eve of his promotion to a higher office in the same rank, had to sign an undertaking that he was accepting his date of birth in the application as true and not the one in his School Leaving Certificate. The press and visual media went to town stating that the General, then Chief of Army Staff, was selfishly trying to get advantage of one more year in that office. He was even threatened with prosecution for contempt of court when, while answering media persons, he had responded that he did not feel justice had been done to him. If that was in the case of a Chief of Army Staff, which the whole nation was watching eagerly, the cases of lesser mortals can well be imagined. There is this gentleman who served with the Central Government for 18 years and resigned for personal reasons. He was denied pension and all terminal benefits merely because he had resigned. Subsequently, on learning of a Supreme Court order saying that pension is not charity but deferred wages he applied to Central Administrative Tribunal for his entitled pension. The ignoramuses in CAT dismissed his petition saying it was time barred. On appeal, the High Court referred it back to CAT stating that there is no time bar for pay and pension related issues. The case shuttled between the CAT and High Court another 3 times before, against all principles of natural justice, the High Court dismissed the last case, after 6 years, by quoting Rule 26(1) of CCS (P) Rules 1972. As per this rule an employee forfeits all his previous service if he resigns. While this, by itself, is obnoxious Rule 40 of the same CCS Rules provides for payment of pension and gratuity to government servants compulsorily retired from service as a penalty. Wondering how the justice seeker could retain his sanity all through. In contrast is the case of a former acting chief justice of a high court being granted enhanced pension, due to him on attaining 80 years of age, on his attaining 79 years of age itself on the plea that he had entered 80 years then. Weird as this claim was, the court added its own justifications like the profession of a judge being a noble one and pension being a welfare measure etc. (Orders, dated 15/03/2018, of the Gauhati High Court in WP(C) 4224/2016 and upheld by the Supreme Court on 08/07/2019 in SLP (Civil) Diary Number 18133/2019) The judgment, on women’s entry in Sabarimala temple, dated 28 September 2018 in WP (C) No. 373 OF 2006, is another one of its class where four of the five judges of the apex court proved their incompetence in interpreting the provisions of the Constitution. Articles 25 and 26 deal with freedom of religion. 25(2)(b) is restrictive and discriminatory in so far as it provides for opening of only Hindu religious institutions of a public character to all classes and sections of Hindus. It is this discrimination, based on religion, that should have been addressed rather than misinterpreting it as a gender based discrimination because women of a particular age group only are banned from entering the temple. This by any stretch of imagination can only be a reasonable restriction as propounded in the many articles on fundamental rights. In contrast, there is absolute ban on women entering their places of worship in other religions. Worse, as per a report, dated April 13, 2021 (‘Supreme Court junks ‘frivolous’ plea to remove 26 Quran verses’ at https://indianexpress.com/article/india/supreme-courtwaseem- rizwi-plea-removal-of-quran-verses-7270090/ ) the apex court imposed Rs 50,000 as cost on the petitioner, Syed Wasim Rizvi, former chairman of Uttar Pradesh Shia Central Waqf Board who had prayed for regulation of Madrassa education on the ground that children should not be indoctrinated and to ensure steps are taken to avoid literal teaching of verses advocating violence. In the Mangalore air crash, while the high court granted same compensation to all those who died, the apex court revised it, and based it on the income of the victims. One is flabbergasted on what role the passenger’s income has got to do with the compensation when he had bought his tickets at the same price as the rest. One could understand if different compensations were paid based on the different classes of passengers and the fares paid by them. The above examples should suffice to conclude that no common sense, no principles and no rationale apply to our judges and their judgments. No wonder somebody commented that ‘we do not get justice in our courts, what we get in our courts is called justice‘. The important question is whether citizens of a democracy should accept this as a gospel? The politicians are often criticized for attempts to subvert the Constitution but the fact is that the architects of the Constitution themselves had subverted it given that the contents are not in synch with the objectives outlined in the Preamble. This had led to the apex court first declaring, in Berubari Union Case (1960), that the Preamble is not part of the Constitution and cannot be enforced in a court of law and then correcting it after more than a decade in Kesavanada Bharathi (1973) stating that it was part of the Constitution but cannot be amended under Article 368. But then we saw the terms ‘Socialist Secular’ and ‘and integrity’ being inserted in the Preamble on 03 Jan 1977, during the dark age of Emergency from 25 Jun 1975 to 21 Mar 1977. And the courts did nothing about it. We have seen how the judiciary had let down even the armed forces, held by the people as a symbol of national pride along with the national flag and national anthem, by their insane verdict in the date of birth case of the Chief of Army Staff. But that was not the first or last in the series of patently wrong judgments of the apex court affecting soldiers. In what is known as The Rank Pay Case, the armed forces officers had been cheated of their Rank Pay introduced in 1986. But the first petitioner, Major Dhanapalan got relief in early 2000. But the court did not extend justice to similarly placed officers. It forced a large number of officers to pursue cases in different groups, all over the country. It took over a decade before these cases were disposed of but only after denying them the dues of 20 years, from 01 Jan 1986 to 31 Dec 2005. Worse, those who had perpetrated the fraud on the gullible officers were not punished. The injustice should be obvious because it was around the same time that Subroto Roy of Sahara went to jail because he could not refund almost Rs 25000 crores to his investors as directed by the court within a specified period. I doubt if all the investors had approached the court for this relief. (For details see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sahara_India_Pariwar_investor_fraud_case.) I cannot blame those who ask in subdued tones if any judges were there among the investors. More recently, in the One Rank, One Pension (OROP) case too, the apex court let down the soldiers by turning the definition of OROP- two personnel from the armed forces in the same rank and with the equal length of service should get the same pension irrespective of their dates of retirement and any future enhancement in the rates of pension must be automatically passed on to past pensioners- itself on its head. Consequently, while the anomalies are gross, the case of Major Generals drawing less pension than Brigadiers, who are junior in rank and years of service, had been highlighted in the order itself. But this has only been mitigated, but not corrected, by raising the Major General’s pension to that of the Brigadier. Interestingly, OROP has been in existence for judges, MPs, MLAs bureaucrats and even the Chiefs of the armed forces since long. Only thing is the format has been different. For MPs and MLAs it is minimum pension beginning with one day of service and a regular pension after 5 years of service. Thereafter there is a fixed increment for every additional year of service. For the babus, at the top two levels they have a fixed amount as pay, and pension being 50 percent of that, every retiree, irrespective of his date of retirement gets the same pension. It applies to the Chief of armed forces who hold the rank of General and equivalent and to Lt Generals and equivalents who are Vice Chiefs and Army Commanders. Other Lt Generals who retire in the same rank and service have, obviously, been left out. Another case in which the apex court has failed soldiers is in what is known as the NFU (for Non-functional Financial Upgradation) case. This obnoxious scheme was introduced in 2006 for the IAS and IPS only, only to promotion incompetence but on the specious argument of stagnation for promotion in their services. By this, if any member of the IAS gets promoted anywhere in the country, the financial benefits would automatically be passed on to all the members of the same batch. In a blatantly discriminatory manner, the same benefit would be passed on to the members of the same batch of IPS only after two years. Worse, the members of the other Group A services like IFS, IRS etc were denied it initially. But they got them after approaching the CAT. The ones who were more eligible, if not the only ones who should have been eligible for such a scheme, the armed forces officers, even after getting a favorable verdict from the Armed forces Tribunal in 2016 are still waiting for it. An appeal filed by the Central Government against this verdict has recently been withdrawn. See the table below for the relative comparison of promotions in the armed forces vis a vis the civil services. The armed forces officers are not only lacking in promotion avenues but even the promotions come late. For example, an army officer gets promoted to the rank of Major General, considered equivalent to the Joint Secretary, on completing 26 years of service, whereas the babu gets promoted to Joint Secretary with just 14 years of service. Worse, it is not only promotion avenues that are lacking for armed forces officers but there is attrition also what with the majority of them getting superannuated as Colonels on attaining 54 years of service. The above case has been explained in some detail only to highlight how a case that should have been disposed off in one hearing had dragged on for 9 years and then had to be withdrawn by the appellants. Contrast this with the case of the high court judge who had been given enhanced pension one year before it was due to him. We have already seen how a false concept of Basic Structure of the Constitution and an unconstitutional Collegium has been thrust on the nation by the judges of our apex court. And we had a situation when these judges were almost demanding that the President just sign the appointment letters prepared by the Collegium. Now let me walk through some not so much discussed issues. Firstly, let me begin with the use of the honorific ‘Justice’ by judges of the higher judiciary. Article 124 (1) states that There shall be a Supreme Court of India consisting of a Chief Justice of India and, until Parliament by law prescribes a larger number, of not more than seven other Judges. That is the appointment is as judges and the senior most is designated as the Chief Justice. So the correct, and only, permissible use is Mr abc, Chief Justice of India, Supreme Court of India or Ms xyz, Judge, Supreme Court of India. Similar logic applies for judges of the High Court under Article 216 of the Constitution. Interestingly, the judges in the subordinate courts do not use this honorific, though they are also judges as per the Constitution and doing the same job. Justice is what is supposed to be delivered by the judges. That brings us to yet another question: why should a high court judge retire at 62 years of age when the one in the Supreme Court retires only at 65? And why should judges retire at 62 and 65 when the babus, file pushers, retire at 60? Quixotically, the Chiefs of Army, Navy and Air force retire at 62 years of age and the Chief of Defense Staff at 65. As an aside it is important to look at what judging is all about. Is it really a profession that requires rigorous training and exercise? To my mind, it is one of the basic and inherent qualities in every human, nay, living, being. All that our designated judges are required to have is knowledge of the law and a commonsensical approach in applying those to given circumstances. Though we have often heard a quip ‘ignorance of law is not an excuse’ we have never questioned why judges are never taken to task when their judgments are overturned by appellate courts. Article 124(7) states that No person who has held office as a Judge of the Supreme Court shall plead or act in any court or before any authority within the territory of India. Now this is essentially a bar on reemployment of judges, for obvious reasons. Unfortunately, the language is not that obvious. So let us look at the provision for judges of the high courts. Article 220 states that No person who, after the commencement of this Constitution, has held office as a permanent Judge of a High Court shall plead or act in any court or before any authority in India except the Supreme Court and the other High Courts. Here obviously there is no scope of any ambiguity. In spite of this, apart from the already provided re-employment in various tribunals and quasi judicial bodies, the judges tried to usurp some more by ordering that chief information commissions should be either a retired Chief Justice of a High Court or a judge of the Supreme Court and that cases should be decided by a bench of two members one of whom should the law qualified and preferably a retired high court judge. (Reportedly the only Chief Information Commissioner who had been suspended from that post was M A Khan, a former judge of the Allahabad High Court. He had been suspended on 09 July 2008 by Governor T V Rajeswar Rao for ‘violating norms for recruiting employees in the commission, financial irregularities, mistreating complainants and non-cooperation with colleagues’. He had later committed suicide due to depression.) Interestingly Para 9 of the order in WP(C ) 210/2012, states: The appointment of the judicial members to any of these posts shall be made in consultation with the Chief Justice of India and Chief Justices of the High Courts of the respective States, as the case may be. Recollect the term ‘consultation’? Fraudulently and dangerously given to mean as concurrence for justifying the unconstitutional Collegium? Fortunately, almost one year after this order a division bench of the court recalled the order but with different directions. Of those this one is particularly relevant: ‘that the Committees under Sections 12(3) and 15(3) of the Act while making recommendations to the President or to the Governor, as the case may be, for appointment of Chief Information Commissioner and Information Commissioners must mention against the name of each candidate recommended, the facts to indicate his eminence in public life, his knowledge in the particular field and his experience in the particular field and these facts must be accessible to the citizens as part of their right to information under the Act after the appointment is made.’ Now just think of applying the same direction in the case of appointment of judges to the higher judiciary. The bigotry should be obvious. I am for all tribunals and quasi judicial bodies being treated as specialist courts and should have a common mode of recruitment. And it should not be left to be filled by retired judges or bureaucrats. My experiences with these quasi judicial bodies have convinced me that they are worse than fly by night operators and a waste of the tax payers’ money. A detailed study about the Information Commissions has been done in three parts of this serious. A Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Law and Justice, then headed by Rajya Sabha member E.M.S Natchiappan, had commented that 'Judges appointing judges is bad enough in itself; judges judging judges is worse.' A former CJI had admitted that 20 percent judges were corrupt. A Transparency International Report revealed that the judiciary and police were the most corrupt institutions in India. Adv Prashant Bhushan exposed that 8 CJIs were corrupt and though contempt of court action was initiated his claim that corruption was used in the wider sense of the term got him reprieve. As if such corruption was legal and ethical. But, in spite of such revelations and admissions, the cause of concern is that nothing has been done to control these crimes. But there are even more serious crimes for which ordinary citizens would have been sent to the coolers for life but judges have got away because of brothers in black cloak judging them. Mysore sex scandal involving judges and women advocates and illegal land allotment scam, involving judges, both in Karnataka, cash at door step scam involving judges of Punjab and Haryana High Court, P D DInakaran case, involving multiple charges, are a few that easily comes to mind. While the details can be got by searching on the internet here are three links that I found very interesting: ➢ https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/law-intern-sexual-harrassement-judiciarystares- at-morality-crisis-176475-2014-01-11 ➢ https://www.legalserviceindia.com/legal/article-5419-a-sneak-peek-into-thecorrupted- indian-judiciary.html and ➢ a document corruption-in-indian-judiciary_1511777721 that can be downloaded from https://wwjmrd.com. Law Commission of India, then headed by a former Supreme Court judge AR Lakshmana, had, in its Report No 230 of Aug 2009, dwelt on the issue of judicial reforms. It had admitted to the failure of the Collegium and the need to revert to the old system, the need for cutting short of vacations by 10-15 days, increasing the working hours by half an hour per day, better use of court time etc. Even these symbolic changes have not been implemented till date. Unfortunately, it had also harped on the judge to population ratio which is a farce. What matters is the judge to docket ratio. This, as per data presented by K T S Tulsi, a senior advocate of the Supreme Court in 2004, was highly in favor of the judges in India. They were handling only less than one third the cases being dealt with by their counterparts in the US of A. People who quote this false reason to cover up their incompetence and other shortcomings should not be eligible, not only for holding the offices of judges but even of any other public office. Things have spiraled down so badly that we have witnessed Supreme Court judges (verbally) convicting victims, not only without trial but without even knowing the facts, as it happened in Nupur Sharma Case. More recently we had another judge threatening to tear apart an accused in a contempt of court case. Reading of such instances one is tempted to ask: arrogance, is your other name a judge? To conclude this part, here are two quotes: Justice is an intrinsic human need. We suffer much privation but we cannot suffer being wronged. Absence of justice, we must not forget, is one of the causes of crime. ('Needed high speed legal redressal'-Aravind Kumar, Jurist and lawyer, Pioneer, Kochi,01 Aug 2006) The judicial system of the country, far from being an instrument for protecting the rights of the weak and oppressed, has become an instrument of harassment of the common people of the country. (People's Convention of Judicial Reforms and Accountability held at ISI, New Delhi on 10-11 Mar 2007; http://www.judicialreforms.org/) P M Ravindran/ raviforjustice@gmail.com / 12 Jun 2024

Friday, September 29, 2023

SOME MEMORIES OF SIKKIM – CIRCA 1965

SOME MEMORIES OF SIKKIM – CIRCA 1965 I joined the signal regiment in November 1965 as a young second lieutenant after the YO’s course at the School of Signals, Mhow. The divisional HQ was then at Mile Stone 9 on the Road Gangtok Nathu La. It had been moved up there recently from Gangtok by the GOC, Maj Gen Sagat Singh, soon after the incident when the Chinese gave an ultimatum that we should vacate Nathu La resulting in orders from the Corp HQ to vacate the pass, which Sagat refused. When the Chinese became belligerent and opened fire, we also opened up with guns and mortars, though there was a restriction imposed by Corps HQ on the use of artillery. Thanks to Sagat’s obduracy, Nathu La was not vacated, unlike the neighbouring pass at Jelep La, held by the neighbouring division. This played a crucial role in the Nathu La skirmish, which occurred two years later. Coming back to MS 9, the divisional HQ and signal regiment were located on a hill slope next to the road. Almost everyone was in tents or tin sheds. There were no bukharies then and it was terribly cold at night. There was no snow clothing and we had to manage with OG jerseys. There were no sleeping bags and at night we had to use three or four blankets to cover ourselves. The officers’ mess was in a tin roofed hut, which was kept warm by sigries. Naturally, we tried to delay the dinner for as long as possible, to enjoy their warmth before retiring to our tents. I was told by the other officers that I should grin and bear it, as the area was in high altitude and this would mean some extra money. How this happened is another story. On the road, just below our location there was once a stone which had the height written as 8,500 feet. Soon after the HQ had moved, the GOC noticed some tall aerials on the hill top right above us. When he enquired from the Commander Signals, Lt Col PK Roy Chowdhury, he was told that these are radio relay aerials. These had to be located at that height so that we could communicate with Gangtok, from where another link enabled us to establish communications with the Corps HQ at Siliguri. Sagat asked his staff to check the height of the location of the radio relay detachment on the hill top. It was just above 9,000 feet. Everyone was thrilled to hear this. Troops located at 9,000 feet or above were entitled to high altitude allowance. Sagat ordered that the stone pillar on the road showing the altitude as 8,500 feet should be uprooted and thrown down in the river. This was promptly done. He gave instructions that the location of the divisional HQ and signal regiment would now be treated as in high altitude and everyone could claim high altitude allowance. When some officers from his staff expressed the fear that this might invite objections from the local audit officer (LAO) during his next visit, Sagat told them not to worry. The LAO should be accommodated in the tent along with the detachment manning the radio relay terminal on the hill top, instead of the JCOs mess. Since the radio relay detachment was part of the divisional HQ, the audit objections, if any, would be set aside. The 2ic was Major George Paisley while the OC 1 Company was Major SK ‘Jimmy’ Dovedy from the 1st JSW course. Interestingly, apart from Maj Dovedy and me, there was no other officer from NDA in the unit, which was overflowing with captains and subalterns. Most of them were ECOs, commissioned during the Emergency declared after the 1962 war with China. There were so many officers that there was a separate squad for officers during morning PT. There was no PT ground and all we could do was run on the road followed by PT in the open areas in front of the signal centre and office complex.

Sunday, August 14, 2022

ADAPTING TO CHANGE - WHY DOES THE ARMY ALWAYS LAG BEHIND?

ADAPTING TO CHANGE - WHY DOES THE ARMY ALWAYS LAG BEHIND? By Maj Gen VK Singh Change is part of life. With time rules and trends change in every walk of life. In almost all cases, these changes are for the better, and make our lives easier and more comfortable. Fifty years ago, the only way to communicate with family members and friends was the letter sent by post or telegram, unless one had a telephone. Today, even those living in remote areas have mobile phones. Very few people had cameras and one had to rely on professional photographers during important occasions such as weddings and family gatherings. The only medium to get news of what is happening in the World was the radio and newspaper, which only the privileged few could afford. Most of the rural population did not have access to banks and had to keep their savings in cash or gold ornaments. Even in cities and towns, depositing and withdrawing money was a tedious process. ATMs and online banking changed all this. Earlier, when a migrant worker wanted to send money to his family in the village, he had to send a money order, which took days if not weeks to reach it destinations. Today the migrant labourer transfers money to his wife online and it reaches her instantly. Another change concerns the identity of the citizens. The only people who had identity cards were members of the Armed Forces, Police and Government departments. A person without a job had virtually no identity. One could vote, provided his name was in the electoral rolls. With the passage of time the use of identity cards has grown exponentially. Fifty years ago, the only card an Armed Forces veteran had was the identity card issued by the Service HQ or Records Office. These granted him access to almost every place including military establishments, offices, hospitals, canteens and so on. These were valid for life and did not have to be renewed. Of course, if one owned a weapon or a car, one had to get a licence for its use, which needed to be renewed from time to time. The same applied to passports for foreign travel. When I retired twenty years ago, my identity card was withdrawn and I was issued a Retired Officers identity card. A few years back this card was withdrawn and I was issued a Veterans Card. With time the number of cards kept increasing. Today a veteran officer has literally dozens of cards. There is the veteran card, the ECHS card, the canteen card, the DSOI membership card, the golf course membership card, the PAN card, the Aadhaar card, the voter card, the driving licence, and so on. In addition, you have debit cards for withdrawing cask from your bank account and credit cards for purchasing items in shops or online. In recent years some more have been added such as the ESM identity card from the Zila Sainik Board. The plethora of cards have created a number of problems, with regard to their safe custody and renewal. As one grows older, keeping track of where each card is kept and when it is due for renewal becomes a hassle. The issue that troubles elderly veterans the most is the process of renewal. Almost all other agencies, government and private, have switched over to online renewal. This applies even to the life certificate one had to submit for his pension from the bank or annuity. Earlier, one had to submit these certificates in writing after getting them countersigned by a gazetted officer or the bank manager. Since the last couple of years, ICICI Prulife which earlier insisted on a physical life certificate now does it on line. After you log in the camera of your phone or laptop takes the photograph and the process is complete. For some reason, the Armed Forces have still not switched on to the online mode. The ECHS card has undergone two changes. Each time, one had to collect it in person. The Veteran card also had to be collected personally from Station HQ. The Zila Sainik Board also insists that you must visit their office to collect the ESM card identity. One might ask, once you have a veteran card, why should you need an ESM card to prove your identity as an ex-serviceman? Credit and debit cards for banks are also renewable. But the new ones are sent by post. If the banks can do it what prevents our military establishments such as Station HQ, ECHS and Zila Sainik Boards from doing the same? Consider the plight of elderly and disabled veterans who find it difficult to make personal visits. Some living in remote villages have to spend a lot of time and money to travel to these establishments just to collect a card. Can we not make their lives somewhat easier by adapting to change and adopting new practices being followed by others?

RANK, APPOINTMENT & DESIGNATION

RANK, APPOINTMENT & DESIGNATION By Maj Gen VK Singh In recent years, there has been a lot of debate on the correct manner of addressing officers of the Armed Forces who have retired from service. Some recommend that the word ‘Retired’ or abbreviation ‘Retd’ should be used after the rank e.g. Colonel (Retd) AB Singh. Others feel that the correct method is to write ‘Retd’ after the name e.g. Colonel AB Singh (Retd). Army HQ tried to remove the confusion and issued a circular on 21 July 2021 clarifying that the latter option is correct, and the name should be written as Colonel AB Singh (Retd). Unfortunately, this has only confounded the confusion. Army officers are granted commissions that are signed personally by the President of India. Under British rule, officers commissioned in the Indian Army before 1935 were known as Kings Commissioned Indian Officers (KCIOs). Their commissions were signed by the King or Queen of England. Most of these officers were granted commissions after undergoing training at Sandhurst or Woolwich in the UK, except for a few like KM Cariappa who was trained at the Daly Cadet College, Indore. After being commissioned, Army officers were earlier granted the rank of Second Lieutenant. This rank has now been abolished in India and officers are being commissioned in the rank of Lieutenant, which was earlier granted after two years’ service as a Second Lieutenant. Thereafter officers continue to get promotions until they retire or are released. The highest rank in the Army is that of General, which is held by the Chief of Army Staff. A few who are exceptionally deserving are promoted from General to Field Marshal, who never retires. In India only two officers have reached the rank of Field Marshal – KM Cariappa and SHFJ Manekshaw. In India, Army officers are entitled to retain their rank even after retirement, as per privileges given under the Constitution which was adopted in 1950, when India became a Republic. However, the practice of military ranks being retained after retirement was in vogue earlier also under British rule. This tradition is followed by most countries, including the UK and the USA. The confusion about the manner of writing ranks after retirement was not there in the initial years after Independence. Old timers will recall that KCIOs such as Cariappa, Nathu Singh, Maharaj Rajendra Sinhji, Thimayya, Thorat etc. did not use the word ‘retired’ after hanging their uniforms. I am not sure when and why this practice started. Lately the word retired has been replaced by veteran, following the custom in most countries. In fact, the Retired Officers Identity Card issued to officers after retirement has now been replaced by the Indian Army Veteran Card, which has the officer’s photograph in uniform as well as civil dress. Since this card is also issued by Army HQ, I wonder if there was a need for the circular issued on 21 July 2021. According to article 18 of the Constitution ‘No title, not being a military or academic distinction, shall be conferred by the State’. Titles are used before names, in formal correspondence as well as on invitation cards and during normal conversation. Many professions carry titles, either by usage or as a result of a professional or academic qualification. Medical practitioners including dentists are universally referred to as doctors, as are those with post graduate degrees such as Ph.D. Judges of the Supreme Court and High Court also carry their titles, even after they retire, though this is from usage and custom rather than any written rule. Similarly, many people who have held the post of ambassador are now using this as a prefix, which is technically incorrect. A person holds the appointment of ambassador in a foreign country for a few years. It is not a title that should be used for life. In smaller countries, the position if often held by a relatively junior member of the Indian Foreign Service. Sometimes the appointment of ambassador is held by a person who is not from the Indian Foreign Service. S Radhakrishnan, VK Krishna Menon, MC Chagla, Karan Singh, Nani Palkiwala and General KM Cariappa have held the appointments of Ambassador or High Commissioner. None of them was from the Indian Foreign Service. And none of them used the prefix Ambassador with their names. As regards the All India Services such as the IAS and IPS, very few of them use these abbreviations as a suffix after their names. Some use the designation or last appointment held. So you may find names such as AB Singh, IAS; AB Singh, DIG, or AB Singh, DG BSF and so on. These are all incorrect. The day an IAS or IPS officer retires, he ceases to be a member of the service. Of course, there is nothing wrong in mentioning his last appointment, e.g. former Cabinet secretary; ex-DGP Haryana and so on. Again, it is a matter of individual choice and if someone wants to add IAS or IPS after his name, it is for the particular service or their association to take a call. Coming back to the question of Army ranks, my view is that it is a matter of personal choice. Once an officer has retired, it is entirely up to him how he writes his name. He can write only his name or his rank and name. Considering the ethos of the Army and the pride most of us feel, no one would like to hide his rank. If he prefers to write Retd or Veteran after his name, so be it. A name is a precious possession and an heirloom given to us by our parents. The rank is sacrosanct symbolising the nation’s trust. Nothing else is important. Posted by veekay at 9:31 AM No comments: Sunday, June 5, 2022 ADAPTING TO CHANGE - WHY DOES THE ARMY ALWAYS LAG BEHIND?