Re: Out of Kargil
No wonder the Indian COAS dismissed his soldiers as not brave, if they were just going to try Bollywood tactics in Kargil, like the below.
http://www.mumbai-central.com/nukkad/aug2001/msg00061.html
**40 Indian army officers face inquiry for futile attacks on Pakistan: **
ISLAMABAD, Aug 03: At least 40 officers of Indian Army face Courts of Inquiry on charges ranging from failure of command and control to cowardice and desertion, during fruitless attacks on various Pakistani posts. A report in Indian Magazine “Out Look” under the caption of “War and Watch-Hunts” says these army officers include ranks of Major and below, Junior Commissioned Officers and jawans. It says "None of the generals, whose duty it was to conduct the war is facing any official inquiry for their flawed leadership. Instead, two of them have been decorated and awarded with plum posting. This has triggered enormous resentment among the junior officers and men.
This is the first time in the history of the Indian Army that such a large number of inquiries have been initiated against officers and men. **But when allegations in the press and Parliament surfaced that the top brass had mismanaged the Kargil operations, the generals concerned were quick to launch a cover-up operation. The ploy they used was to selectively target battalions entrusted with the most difficult of tasks- charging up the mountain to evict the “freedom fighters” perched atop, a strategy built around high human cost. Other top targets are officers and men of those battalions charged with failing to detect the take over while the top brass ignored the early warnings of heightened enemy build-ups. The blame has been placed solely on those deployed in Kargil. Even the Subrahmanyam Committee talks of overall intelligence failure. **
According to a serving general, more planning should have preceded the sending of men up the treacherous mountains. The suggested plan of action was to take positions on the sides of the hills, launch an aerial attack and starve the freedom fighters. Then final assault should have been followed. But the Army Chief, under pressure from a political leadership, wanted quick results. One senior officer recalls the chief’s brief: “I want the war over quickly, whatever the cost.” As a result, troops were sent on suicidal missions. Some of those who retreated in the face of heavy freedom fighters’ fire are precisely those currently branded as cowards." The magazine quoted a senior general at army headquarters as saying," It was a foolhardy battle, which sent officers and men to certain death. Junior officers have been made scape-goats since the seniors who bungled are known to be close to the chief." Junior officers posted in the Leh-Kargil-Batalik region are outraged that the generals should get away.
The man who orchestrated this unprecedented campaign is former Chief of Army Staff Gen. V.P. Malik, who issued a show-cause notice to Brig Surinder Singh, the then commander of the Kargil based 121 Brigade, asking why he shouldn’t be dismissed from service for his various acts of “commission and omission.” The irony is that Malik himself was accused of taking the Kargil issue lightly and going on a ’ goodwill’ visit to Poland and holidaying in Europe even after it was known the freedom fighters had taken over the heights. Officers in the Judge Advocate General’s branch have told media persons that all the officers and men facing the Courts of Inquiries are likely to be let off with a mild reprimand and they should not be hasty in rushing to civilian courts. Clearly, Army Headquarters is apprehensive that those being targeted will move the courts. In Srinagar, officers are aghast that there has been selective victimisation even of JCOs. “JCOs simply follow the orders of their immediate superiors. By targeting them, the seniors are only demoralising the vital link between officers and ORs (other ranks) personnel,” a major pointed out.