Bipin Rawat – India’s First-ever CDS?

Announcement of the CDS post shows PM Modi-led government’s decisive and political will, to transform India’s military might. However, the CDS himself must remain apolitical.

By: Kunal Chonkar

New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Uttarakhand unit, on 26 December congratulated Army General Bipin Rawat for being India’s new Chief of Defense Staff’s (CDS). Quickly realizing that their tweet came even before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official announcement, they deleted the post from their Twitter handle.

While the BJP’s Uttarakhand unit has come under severe criticism over their premature celebration, it is only befitting to accept this as a Freudian slip.

Defense analysts have said that General Rawat’s statements have endeared him to 7 Racecourse Road. Thus, even after he overstepped his authority, there was no formal displeasure exhibited by New Delhi’s political executive.

“No, chief from any of the three services has ever given any political remarks. Thus, the decision to appoint a CDS, days before he (Gen. Rawat) retires is looked upon as an announcement of his extended tenure,” a retired army officer said. The former two-star officer was quick to add that the decision to appoint General Rawat as a CDS is bound to cause heartburn in the other two services.

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Ever since the Kargil Review Committee in 1999 recommended an appointment of a CDS, concerns have continued to spill that it would be dominated by the Army. Thus, never allowing the Navy and Air Force to fully support a CDS appointment.

Why the Delay?

Apprehensions in the political class and lack of consensus in the defense establishment have long worked to deter the genesis of a CDS.

In the years under the Congress-led government – babus and ministers denied the creation of the post foreboding that such a move would position a praetorian guard in New Delhi.

The government created the Integrated Defense Staff (IDS) in 2002, with a vision to appoint a CDS. However, like several other creations – the IDS also became a nebulous department within the military establishment.

This was topped by the inter Services bickering against the CDS post. The Indian Air Force (IAF) opposes the move with claims that there would be too much concentration of military power in a single chair.

Why now?

For a single-point military integration and advise – India has an enervated equivalent known as the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC). The senior-most among the three Service chiefs is appointed to head the CoSC, an office that lapses with the incumbent’s retirement.

However, the founding structure of this office has rendered it a toothless function. “The post (CoSC) did not further tri-service integration, resulting in inefficiency and expensive duplication of assets. Also, the National Security Advisor is currently performing a key role – providing joint military advice to the government – which checkmates the office of CoSC,” explained a defense expert.

General Rawat took charge as CoSC chairman from then IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa on 27 September. With the pre-scheduled ceremony of baton transfer, on 27 December, been abruptly postponed by the Ministry of Defense, it seems that the PM Modi-led government has hinted that the new CDS is around the corner.

Moreover, all nuclear-weapon states have CDS. With the increasing complexity of security challenges in the modern warfare arena, India requires a more integrated approach to its military tactics and strategies.

General Rawat – BJP’s Blue-Eyed Boy or Befitting CDS?

General Rawat is an expert, veteran operator in counter-insurgency operations in the northeast and Jammu and Kashmir. He was also the Chief of Army when the PM Modi-led government carried out surgical strikes against Pakistan after the attack in Uri.

One can debate about General Rawat’s intended and implemented in-house reforms during his tenure as the army chief. However, the mission he set for himself – left incomplete as the army chief – can only be achieved as a CDS.

His agenda to restructure and reform the force, cutting and merging existing departments at the army headquarters – line perfectly with the role of a CDS. Many are calling the CDS to post a second coming for the 27th Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army. With PM Modi demonstrating the decisive political will to own and fund transformational changes in the Indian military, there cannot be a better opportunity for the General.

Nonetheless, ever since his appointment – as the Army Chief – superseding two more senior Lieutenant Generals, power corridors have been rife with rumors. Skeptics claimed that the politician-army nexus has, in certain aspects, weakened the General’s professionalism and apolitical appearance.

There is no doubt that the creation of the CDS is one of PM Modi’s enduring legacy. However, the government with the appointment of the CDS must strike confidence in the three Services, without politicizing interests, and keeping the nation first.