Contrary to the perception, five years of the Modi government have weakened India’s national security since the focus was not on making India militarily strong, but on furthering the right-wing agenda of projecting a muscular India. This was done by a three-pronged simultaneous plan: identification of a desirable threat; centralised defence planning; and deep selection of service chiefs. This has eliminated the need for urgent military reforms. Interestingly, nobody even notices this.

PM Narendra Modi greeting the three service chiefs

The recent appointment of Vice Admiral Karambir Singh as the next chief of naval staff superseding an officer does not mean that he manipulated his elevation. All it implies is that he was perceived as more suitable for the task at hand which was explained by the Prime Minister himself in October 2014. Addressing the combined commanders conference, Narendra Modi had said, “The threats may be known, but the enemy may be invisible.” At once it was clear that fighting terrorism would be the primary job of the armed forces, never mind the growing real threats from the two military lines, with Pakistan and China.

Since terrorism had global appeal, it would help raise Modi’s stature on the world stage. With the National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval himself being a counter-terror specialist, he could comfortably lead the defence services. The generals, who had risen in service doing counter-terror operations (CT ops) for over three decades, were delighted. They were no longer required to make excuses for not going back to their primary role of war-fighting — a thankless job without the attendant perks like publicity, promotions and awards. Not for nothing the two-year tenure of 15 corps commander (in Kashmir) was curtailed to less than a year to accommodate the growing list of aspirants vying for the prized posting. Moreover, the Modi dispensation managed to manipulate most of the media and the mood of people, who, charged with ultra-nationalist fervour, took pride in counting our own dead draped in the Tricolour instead of asking the government why so many of our own were dying.