Background Guide. Cabinet Committee on Security. 1 Cabinet Committee on Security

Transcription

1 Background Guide Cabinet Committee on Security 1 Cabinet Committee on Security

2 Table of Contents Contents Pages Table of Contents 2 Message From the Board 3 Portfolios 4-6 Sino-Indian War of Indo-Pak War of Agricultural Crisis of Foreign Exchange Crisis of Indo-Pak War of 71 or the Bangladesh Liberation War Questions to be Addressed 20 2 Cabinet Committee on Security

3 Message from the Executive Board This committee, as informed earlier, shall be simulated as one with a shifting timeline between the years of 1960 and 1971, with updates from the Board as & when they get them through their channels of communication. The essence of a historical simulation of a committee is to primarily give an opportunity to different stakeholders to revisit the situation, explore the various possibilities & find ways to resolve the issue in the best possible way. We expect all members to be thoroughly researched & Ill aware of their interests, affiliations & positions. Likewise, it will also be appreciated if the members are clear about the stance, powers & jurisdiction of their particular organization, agency or ministry though we have attempted to give you an insight into the various portfolios. Though the committee shall react on the basis of updates; the background guide is solely to give all members an insight into all events that took place between the years 1960 and 1971, and help them understand what the scenario was like in those years and what actions were taken. It is up to the members to take various decisions in regard to the issues at hand, and mould the history in ways they think is best suited for the welfare of the nation. We hope that apart from the various perspectives the agenda at hand, this committee shall help members to learn & act as change-makers and decision makers of the nation in an interesting environment of a decade of various political equations, massive external pressures, threatening neighbours & internal difficulties. Best wishes! You may contact us on the following id in case of any queries- umunccs@gmail.com 3 Cabinet Committee on Security

4 Portfolios 1.) Attorney General of India: He is the Government of India s chief legal advisor & represents it in the Supreme Court of India. He can give advice to the Government of India on legal matters referred to him, and may participate in any Parliamentary proceedings. He shall only act after the Law Ministry has been consulted, hence he is here representing the Ministry s stand too. 2.) Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission of India: She shall head a body functioning under the Department of Atomic Energy, under the charge of the Prime Minister. Its employees are classified & not revealed. Set up in 1948 to look after the atomic energy activities of the nation, the AEC also trains atomic scientist, extracts atomic minerals and was at the centre of controversy when in 1964, China conducted nuclear tests. 3.) Chief of the Army Staff: He is the Commander of the Indian Army, and shall represent the Indian Armed Forces largest component. The Indian Army s mission is to ensure national security & unity, defend it from external aggression, and maintain peace & security within its borders. 4.) Chief of the Indian Navy: She will head the naval branch of the Indian Armed Forces, whose primary aim is to secure India s maritime borders & was especially involved in the 1971 war, where it played a huge role in the nation s victory. The Navy though always complains of not being utilized completely in the 1965 war. 5.) Chief of the Indian Air Force: He shall represent the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces, whose responsibility is to secure the Indian airspace and conduct aerial warfare. It was substantially involved in the 1965 and 1971 wars. Again, it is said that the Air Force was not used properly in the 1962 war. 6.) Director-General, Military Intelligence: Set up in the year 1941, it is the intelligence arm of the Indian Armed Forces. It is responsible for generating tactical strategies and gather intelligence about threats to India. Director-General heads the independent body, but has to submit all reports to the Chief of Army. Little is known about its operations & activities. 4 Cabinet Committee on Security

5 7.) Director, IB: She is the head of the world s oldest intelligence agency. Responsible for garnering intelligence and execute counter-intelligence & counter-terrorism tasks, apart from intelligence collection about border areas. Later, R&AW was established to look after the external intelligence in 1963 after IB s failure in the 1962 war. 8.) Director, Special Police Establishment: He is the head of the foremost investigative police agency of India, under the Government of India involved in major criminal probes. It is overseen by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions of the Union Cabinet. 9.) Governor, RBI: Heading the central banking institution, she will control the monetary policy. It played a major role in reviving Indian economy in 1960s when banks crashed, with nationalization of 14 major banks. 10.)Leader of Opposition, Lok Sabha: She will lead the official opposition in the Lower House of Parliament of India. She was in news in the 1960s for criticizing & initiating the no- confidence motion against the Government after wars. 11.) Leader of Opposition, Rajya Sabha: Though no official post as such was created until 1969, the leader of the party of the opposition still did exist. It is his responsibility to oppose or agree with the Government s policy in the Council of States of the Parliament. 12.)Minister of Home Affairs: Responsible for the maintenance of internal security & domestic policy. It has several departments for issues like border management, internal security, et cetera. The country s police force comes under the ambit of the Ministry. 13.) Minister of Finance: He shall be responsible for the fiscal policy & taxation of the Union Government. The Ministry of Finance sets up a special committee to allocate resources in times of urgency. It also played a role in the crisis of foreign exchange crisis of thr 60s. 5 Cabinet Committee on Security

6 14.) Minister of Defence: Charged with coordinating & supervising all agencies related to national security. Even the paramilitary forces are under the purview of the Ministry. 15.) Minister of External Affairs: Responsible for the conduct of India s relations with foreign countries. The cadre controlling authority of the Civil Services (IFS) falls under the Ministry. 16.) Minister of Communications: The cadre controlling authority of Civil Services(ITS, IPoS, TTS, IPTAFS) are under the administration & supervision of the Ministry. All communication cables, lines & policies about the same are under the purview of the Ministry. 17.) Minister of I&B: The top-notch body of the Government of India to regulate the information, broadcasting, press & films in India. Also, it is responsible for broadcasting arm of the Union Government- Prasar Bharti, and closely works with the Communications Ministry. 18.) Minister of Railways & Transportation: Heads the ministry controlling the rail transport of the nation. It has full control over the Indian Railways, and may take any decision with regards to the rail movement in India. 19.) Minister of Agriculture: Apex body for formulating rules, regulations & laws for the agricultural sector in India. It was closely involved during the crisis of food in 1960s. 20.) National Security Advisor: A special post created by the Government & in the Committee, to directly contact the Prime Minister with important information after studying all facts carefully. He/She shall advise the Board & Prime Minister of threats & possible actions that the Government could take. 6 Cabinet Committee on Security

7 Year (Sino-Indian War) History: Often, it is said that the base for the Sino-Indian War of 1962 started in the year 1950 when Tibet was annexed by China. Tibet, being the huge buffer state between India & China was officially included as part of the Chinese territory in the official maps of their government in between 1952 and Several Indian leaders warned the then-prime Minister Nehru of possible Chinese intrusions into the Indian territory, but it was considered most unlikely to happen as India & China had always shared warm and cordial relations since time immemorial. India was one of the first countries to recognize the new Chinese government in Nehru felt strongly for our neighbor, and helped China in the international fora too. All of this was followed by the joint enunciation of Panchsheel or the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence by Pt. Nehru & Zhou Enlai in the year It was during this time that the famous line of Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai came into existence, as a sign of a stronger relationship between the two countries. Through this agreement, India accepted the claim of the Chinese to have administrative control over Tibet. In 1958, after an armed uprising in Tibet against Chinese occupation; Dalai Lama held talks with the Indian side complaining about the Chinese influence in the Tibetan culture. The Chinese side had already promised India that Tibet would be given greater autonomy, when the Chinese suppressed their uprising. After sensing the growing unrest and the worsening situation, the Dalai Lama crossed over to India and asked for asylum. The Indian government gave him refuge in the city of Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh, which is the largest refuge settlement of Tibetans in India. The Chinese side did not like this step of the Indian government & publicly condemned it through various newspapers too. 7 Cabinet Committee on Security

8 In the year 1960, a leading newspaper daily under the Chinese government control People s Daily wrote an article about the completion of the road between Xinjiang & Tibet, which crossed over the disputed region of Aksai Chin. It raised many eyebrows in India, as Aksai Chin was always considered to be a part of the Indian territory. There were reports, at the same time, that China had full control over sq. kilometres of Indian land which was a cause of worry for the Indian side. Responding to the Indian side, the Chinese proposed a status quo agreement wherein the troops of both sides shall remain where they did currently i.e. Chinese in Aksai Chin, while India in North East Frontier Agency. The boundary dispute between the two nations was regarding two territories: Aksai Chin in the Ladakh region, while North East Frontier Agency in the North-East. At that time, the Ladakh-Aksai Chin region was guarded by the Central Reserve Police Force while the border at the North East Frontier Agency was guarded by the Assam Rifles. Aksai Chin is the disputed border area, claimed by China as part of the Xinjiang Autonomous Region and also by India as part of the Ladakh district of the Jammu & Kashmir. The line separating J&K from Aksai Chin is the Line of Actual Control i.e. concurrent with the Chinese claim over Aksai Chin. The territory is exactly 37, square kilometers, and largely a barren mountaineous region, which is reason enough for a large section of the Indian expert team to say that India has been wasting resources on a barren land which could be used productively for development of other regions. Historically, Ladakh has been a part of the Tibetan region annexed into the Indian territory by the Sikh Confederacy of Jammu in The defeat of the Sikh by the hands of the British transferred the land to the British India. The boundary agreements, about the extremeities of Aksai Chin were well-defined but the Aksai Chin area per se lay undefined. 8 Cabinet Committee on Security

9 In the year 1865, the Survey of India led by W.H. Johnson proposed the Johnson Line putting Aksai Chin in the region of Kashmir. At this time, the Chinese did not control Tibet. Later, the Maharaja of Kashmir sent forces to claim an sq. miles area as Kashmiri territory, but soon the Chinese forces laid foundations and boundary markers to mark their claim. In another attempt by the British, Sir John Ardagh proposed a new boundary line along the Kun Lun Mountains as the British feared Russian expansion. Thus, the new line came to be known as the Johnson-Ardagh Line in But soon in 1898, the Chinese proposed a new line to the British Consul-General, placing both Lingzi Tang plains & Aksai Chin in China. The British Consul-General agreed & forwarded it to the British Indian government. Taking the Karakoram mountains to be the natural Indian boundaries, the British presented this line as the MacCartney-MacDonald line in 1899.The Chinese government did not respond to the proposal and it was taken as Chinese reluctance. But later, China claimed that this was their accepted boundary always though no formal official boundaries had been negotiated. From the Independence era, the Government of India used the Johnson Line as the boundary. This Johnson Line is not used west of the Karakoram Pass, where China adjoins Pakistan in the Pakistanadministered Gilgit-Baltistan. In 1962, after negotiations over the region, China and Pakistan accepted boundaries on the basis of MacCartney-MacDonald Line. India still does not recognize that China-Pakistan have a common border as the particular region is within the domains of the pre-1947 state of Kashmir & Jammu. War: What started in the March of 1962 as a killing of three soldiers at an Indian outpost turned into a full war between the two nations in October. The Chinese invaded India on both the sides of the border, with the first attack lasting one week. The Chinese forces captured key areas of the Arunachal Pradesh. The second attack came in the form of a two-pronged approach from Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh; which Indians blocked in Ladakh but could not in Arunachal. The Chinese soon reached Assam in November 1962, even planting a flag there. 9 Cabinet Committee on Security

10 Later, the Chinese declared a unilateral ceasefire, withdrew its troops & went back where it initially was. The effect of this loss was huge. India lost the war, incurred huge financial losses, induced humiliation, dented its image both home & abroad. Most commanders of the Indian Army had to resign or had to be fired, while Ministers also left the Cabinet with the Defence Minister V.K. Menon resigning first. A noconfidence motion was also raised by the Opposition for the first time in the history of Indian polity. The war with China alerted India of the volatile situation in the North East region, which was both underdeveloped & presented India with a huge challenge of national integration. Later, the Indian government granted statehood to Nagaland, and many constructive steps had to be taken to unite the North East states with the Indian side. 10 Cabinet Committee on Security

11 Year (Indo-Pak War) Often known as the Second Kashmir War, the 1965 war between India and Pakistan was primarily over the disputed region of Jammu & Kashmir. But the clash eventually did not resolve this dispute, but it did engage the US and the Soviet Union in ways that finally had implications for subsequent power involvement in the region. In January 1965, Pakistani patrols began patrolling in territory controlled by India while it was in February-March that Pakistan began a secret Operation Gibraltar, to infiltrate forces into J&K to precipitate an insurgency against the Indian rule in the state. However this failed, as local Kashmiris reported about the covert infiltrators in cities of Srinagar. The initial attack took place on the 8 th April, 1965 by both the countries on each other s posts. Pakistan Army made advances in the Gujarati territory of Kutch of Rann, and successfully captured around 1400 sq. kilometers, including a small city of Kanjharkot. On the 5 th of August, 1965 around Pakistani soldiers crossed the Line of Control headed for various areas within Kashmir, as reported by Indian outposts. By the end of August, following a gradual advancement strategy by both the sides, India captured three mountain positions 8 km into the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir while Pakistan captured three cities of Tithwal, Uri & Poonch. On 1 st of September, Pakistan launched Operation Grand Slam to capture key towns and severe communications & cut off supply routes to the Indian troops. The Pakistani Army managed to capture the town of Chhamb in Jammu & Kashmir, and made gains by attacking with superior tanks (rumoured to be supplied by the United States). The Pakistani strategy was to simply move forward through the Kashmir front with heavy artillery. But the Indians opened up the fronts of Punjab & Rajasthan, forcing the Pakistan Army to relocate its troops to defend its province of Punjab. India crossed the International Border on 6 th, marking the official beginning of the war. India captured the cities of Sialkot, Haji-Pir & was 12 kilometres from the largest city of Pakistan, Lahore. 11 Cabinet Committee on Security

12 The war also saw the engagement of the air forces of the both the nations in combat for the first time. It was the Indian Army which incurred more losses in terms of the number of air crafts, while Pakistan lost more when it came to air combat. Also, the largest tank battle since World War II took place in the war of Here, it was the Pakistani Army which had a numerical & a technological advantage with Patton M-47 and M-48 tanks made in the United States. About the naval hostilities, India claimed that it wanted the war to remain a land- based one while Pakistan claims to have stopped INS Vikrant from even leaving the Bombay Port with its PNS Ghazi. Finally, with the ceasefire, Pakistan had captured around 800 sq. km while India captured around 2100 sq. km. The Soviet Union Premier Kosygin hosted ceasefire negotiations in Tashkent, where the Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri & President Ayub Khan signed the Tashkent agreement, by virtue of which there was a ceasfire, a promise to resolve problems via talks & withdrawal of troops to pre-august lines by the 25 th of February, India is often criticized to have bowed down to growing international diplomatic pressure & accepted the ceasefire after the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution calling for an unconditional ceasefire. On the very next day of the signing of the agreement, the Prime Minister of India suffered a heart attack and died in Tashkent. Mystery over his death still remains. The implications of the war, though India won it, were manifold. India was already suffering from an agricultural crisis when the war increased the financial losses to the Government. Also, the Indian military intelligence Intelligence Bureau & the Military Intelligence gave no warning of the impending Pakistani invasion. The Ministry of Defence of India, along with the Finance Ministry in its report gave up some astounding facts about how the Army had lied about using up of 70% of ammunition when only 14% had been used. Though Lal Bahadur Shastri was always considered a soft & weak leader by his own countrymen, the decision about the war came to shun this fact completely as he was hailed as a national hero now. 12 Cabinet Committee on Security

13 Agricultural crisis of The agricultural production of India worsened in the years 1965, 1966 and This resulted in a severe food shortage & famine-like conditions in many parts of the country, especially in the state of Bihar. This period is often said to be a Ship-to-mouth existence. Food deprivation in Bihar led to acute & widespread malnutrition, with calorie intake dropping from 2200 calories per capita per day to 1155 calories per capita per day; as per official Health Ministry figures of the Government of India. Agricultural production of the food grains dropped from 7.3mn tones to 4.3mn tones in a span of two years from 1965 to The national agricultural production also dropped 19%. Food prices in Bihar hit a record high in Bihar, with the price of costly grains of wheat double than that of the price in wheat-growing state of Punjab. The official death toll of the famine was 2353, half of which were in the state of Bihar. A number of times, the Government of India had to ask the United States & other Western nations for aid. The Government even set up several ration & fair price shops to limit the impact of the famine apart from improving communication, issuing famine bulletins and offering employment to those affected by the famine. These events & factors led to the Green Revolution strategy, giving support & subsidies to well-off farmers & peasants to increase production rapidly. After proper deliberations between the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Union Ministry of External Affairs, the Green Revolution took place. 13 Cabinet Committee on Security

14 Foreign Exchange crisis of Foreign exchange reserves are an extremely critical aspect of any country s ability to engage in commerce with other countries. A large stock of foreign currency reserves facilitates trade with other nations and lowers transaction costs associated with international commerce. If a nation depletes its foreign currency reserves and finds that its own currency is not accepted abroad, the only option left to the country is to borrow from abroad. As a developing economy, it is to be expected that India would import more than it exports. Despite government attempts to obtain a positive trade balance, India has had consistent balance of payments deficits since the 1950s. The 1966 devaluation was the result of the first major financial crisis the government faced. Due to the prevailing agricultural food grain shortage, the United States asked the Indian government to change their agricultural policies which would indirectly benefit the West. During the Indo-Pak War 1965 and the subsequent years of hostility, the United States responded by suspending food aid on a long-term basis. The idea behind their action, along with the World Bank was to force India adopt a new agricultural policy and devalue the currency, Rupee. This step was seen as a major step to benefit the West world, which would then enable them to infiltrate more into the Indian economy & entitle them to more profits. In August 1966, India was asked by the World Bank to liberalise its restrictions on trade before foreign aid would materialize. At the end of the decade in 1969, the Indian Rupee traded around 13 British Pence, at an all-time low until then which stated an urgent need to have fiscal policies away from populist measures. Later, the Government nationalized 14 major commercial banks. Henceforth, the Rupee was devalued by 36.5% in June 1966 after negotiations between the Union Finance Ministry & the Reserve Bank of India, and substantial rationalization of tariffs & export subsidies took place. 14 Cabinet Committee on Security

15 The Balance of Payments improved considerably, not because of the reinstating of the foreign aid but because of the decline in imports. By borrowing from the Reserve Bank of India and, therefore, essentially printing money, the government could finance its extravagant spending through an inflation tax. Additionally, the large amounts of foreign aid that flowed into India clearly did not encourage fiscal or economic responsibility of the government. Although it helped the Indian government, the food aid had a net inflationary effect on the Indian economy i.e. prices eventually rose from the normal range. New money was already created in those years as per peculiar financial procedures. The shipments to India were executed in exchange for India Rupee funds, accumulated in the Indian banks & used to cover local US government expenses(with the balance to be returned to the Government of India in the form of concessional loans & grants). There was a huge liquidizing process whereby special securities were first converted into Indian public debt, which was then purchased by the Central Bank & passed on to the US account as new money. The US account would disburse that money to the Indian public sector as loans & grants, which was noted to have increased the inflation rate by 9.8% in Cabinet Committee on Security

16 Year (Indo-Pak War/Bangladesh Liberation War) Late 1970 and early 1971 saw many media reports unveiling the dark truth behind the unfair practices of the Pakistani Army towards the Bengali-speaking East Pakistani citizens. Many reports stated how a step-motherly treatment was meted out to these citizens, and how a large number of killings were also taking place at the same time in East Pakistan. Though the East of Pakistan had a slight majority of the country s population, political power & financial dominance remained in the hands of West Pakistanis. To counter the balance of the East wing s votes, the West Pakistan rulers established a One Unit Scheme where all West Pakistan was considered one province. It was observed that any East Pakistani elected as the Prime Minister of Pakistan would be swiftly deposed by the West Pakistani establishment. Leaders like Khwaja Nazimuddin, Md. Bogra or Huseyn Suhrawardy were denied their fair rights over the Prime Ministership, solely because they were residents of the East Pakistan. Soon, Pakistan was under the military dictatorship of General Ayub Khan( ) and later General Yahya Khan( ). Both of them were West Pakistanis. In the year 1971 when the Awami League won a clear majority, Sheikh Mujibur Rehman got a decisive mandate winning 167 of the 169 seats in East Pakistan. However, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto(leader of the Pakistan People s Party) refused to allow Rehman to become the PM. Instead, his idea was to have two different Prime Ministers for the two wing. In the mean while, Pakistan Army had secretly started with its pet project Operation Searchlight to demolish the political unrest against the West Pakistani rulers. It is reported how 3,00,000 civilians were killed, while 10,00,000 civilians went missing or crossed over to the Indian territory. Although the violence focused on the provincial capital Dhaka, it also affected all parts of East Pakistan. Residential halls of the University of Dhaka were particularly targeted. 16 Cabinet Committee on Security

17 The only Hindu residential hall was destroyed by the Pakistani armed forces, and estimated residents were killed. Fearing a brutal civil war, Bhutto proposed a meeting between him and Rehman to work out a solution for the current political scenario. Though initial considerations yielded consensus, the fallout between the two leaders became evident soon after and no proper agreement could be reached out. Facing pressures from the states of India over the refugee problems, the central government thought of some solution. It appealed, in an official document & open speech by the Prime Minister herself to stop the apparent genocide in East Pakistan. The Indian government, at the same time, set up a large number of refugee camps for these civilians. Slowly, India tried to contact the United States(then a supporter of the Pakistani rulers) to persuade Pakistan to cease the killings of innocent East Pakistani civilians. Though the United States promised certain action, the Western countries openly backed Pakistani by placing no sanctions against it. Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, on 25 th March 1971, in a strong speech in Bangladesh raised the slogan Joi Bongla! and reaffirmed his stance of the struggle of the East Pakistanis for freedom from Pakistani suppressing rule. He signed an official declaration that read that Bangladesh was a sovereign & independent country. This was enough to blow things out of proportion for the West Pakistan rulers, who immediately sent their trusted General as the Governor of East Bengal among huge resentment against the political establishment; and started an official war with violent clashes between the Bangladeshi police and the armed forces of Pakistan. As expected, the East Pakistani resistance was disorganized & spontaneous but surprisingly, it was a prolonged one. The resistance gradually grew, with every crack down by the Pakistani Army. The Bangladeshi forces combined to form a Mukti Bahini - an organization aimed at dislodging the Pakistani Army from the ruling position. 17 Cabinet Committee on Security

18 It is often said that it was in mid-june or early-july that the Mukti Bahini started receiving indirect aid from the Indian side, in terms of money and arms. Adopting the techniques from the Indian side, around guerilla warfare soldiers attacked the Pakistan Army but failed to achieve their objectives because of the monsoon. Scared of a possible military intervention by the Indian side, the Pakistani Air Force launched pre-emptive air strikes after publicly threatening India to face war and demolition in the next 10 days on 1 st December, India soon retaliated with air strikes on Pakistani air bases. The Pakistani Army followed a strategy of capturing Western Indian territory, while holding on to the East Pakistan territory. Indian Navy, unlike previous wars, actively participated in the war of 1971 & launched an offensive on the port city of Karachi destroying key Naval bases. The Indian naval forces approached the battle via a two way approach simultaneously attacking Karachi & Chittagong on the two different sides of the Indian territory. Ultimately, capturing a 5000 sq. miles territory of Pakistan & forcing the surrender of the East Pakistani forces in Dhaka after surrounding it from three sides; 16 th December, 1971 saw the victory of the Indian forces and the official independence of the Bangladeshi population. India declared a unilateral ceasefire and later in 1972, the Simla Agreement saw an official pact been signed between Zulfikar Ali Bhutto & Indira Gandhi ending the war between the two nations with the release of prisoners of wars. 18 Cabinet Committee on Security

19 Questions to be addressed 1.) Was India naïve in its assessment of Chinese intentions? 2.) How could India have prepared itself in case of a military engagement? 3.) Would it be better if more diplomatic talks had taken place? 4.) Should India have given asylum to the Dalai Lama? 5.) Which border line demarcates India s border with Pakistan & China? 6.) Was there a conspiracy in the death of Lal Bahadur Shastri? 7.) Was there an intelligence failure in the war of 1962? 8.) Did the Army actually lie about details to stop the 1965 war? 9.) Could India prepare itself better for an agricultural crisis? 10.) What caused the foreign exchange crisis? 11.) Why did India sign the Shimla Agreement of 1972? 12.) Should India have bargained more? 13.) India should have taken up all these issues at an international forum?