Former Vice Chief of Indian Army Lieutenant General Vijay Oberoi, who lost one of his legs during the Indo–Pak War in 1965 as a young officer, has posted a scathing article titled “Sirs I am Disillusioned and Devastated” taking on almost everybody including the three service chiefs and the Prime Minister.
In his article for thecitizen.in, he has questioned the trivialisation of “Beating the Retreat” ceremony. He has also described it as Bollywood “Nautanki”.
The Lieutenant General served as the vice-chief in 2000-2001 after first serving as the director-general of military operations, a strike corps commander and then chief of the Chandimandir-based Western Army Command.
He writes, "Firstly, our bandsmen, besides playing martial music, are also adept at playing symphonies (both western and Indian), but there is a place and occasion to play them. By all accounts, a ‘Beating of Retreat’ ceremony is not one of them! I do hope we do not add more colour to it in future on account of directions from the higher ups and ask them to wear dhotis and kurtas to add authenticity to the proceedings!
Secondly, while some of our bandsmen, particularly drummers do get into the spirit of the moment and start swaying, if not gyrating, as they play, but is it forced on those poor boys or they do so automatically, as the spirit moves them? It was really distressing to see some of the drummers, specially from the Naval Band, breaking out into some sort of a bhangra or akin to it , either in their enthusiasm or to impress their Chief! Maybe, the proximity to Bollywood may have inspired them!
At this rate, we may in future years witness dances to showcase our wide variety of dance forms, or God forbid gyrations by the Bollywood ‘nautanki’ crowd and rappers to liven up the staid proceedings!”
Launching an all out attack on the Modi government over its flip-flops on OROP he said, “For the first time since I took part in the parade, as a cadet from the National Defence Academy (NDA) in 1959 I think, I was shocked to see no participation by the veterans, who have sacrificed their lives and limbs for the nation. Are they of no consequence? Are they spent forces (khali Kartoos), as far as the nation is concerned. Let me rub it in, because you as Chiefs of both serving personnel and veterans agreed to have a shoddy cardboard tableau marked OROP, trying to show the false magnanimity of this self-serving government, which having gone back on its word to sanction OROP in its totality and parliamentary approved definition, has reneged at the behest of those darling blue-eyed boys, also known as the bureaucrats.
Do you think the people of India will go along with such a fraud! You may be fully committed to your bosses, but why have you become such ‘Ji Hazoors’ that you have now forgotten even your comrades in arms, who incidentally were at least partly responsible for assisting you to reach the present high appointments you hold!”.
He has also attacked the political class for pushing the three service chiefs to back seat during their own “At Home”. He writes, “My last point relates to a group photograph taken at the ‘At Home’ of the Army Chief that has gone viral on the e-mail circuit and on the social media that shows the three Chiefs subordinated to the back seat, during their own ‘At Home’, while the netas, both present and past are reposed on comfortable chairs in the front row. Have the armed forces been reduced to such a state on their own function? See, how the mighty have fallen! Hallelujah and Jai Ho simultaneously!!!
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