Recent remarks by India’s two top military leaders, in the wake of the four-day military conflict with Pakistan, have underscored the complex nature of modern day warfare. In a significant revelation, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan, on 31 May, confirmed that the Indian Air Force (IAF) lost fighter jets during the opening night of Operation Sindoor, the military campaign initiated by India following the Pahalgam terror attack. The CDS, speaking to Bloomberg TV in Singapore, acknowledged these “initial losses” were due to tactical errors. While he did not disclose the exact number of jets lost, he said that it is not the number that matters but the reasons for the failure is what is important.
These statements coming from the country’s top military leader assume paramount importance. Meanwhile, nationalist social media trolls in India are very busy attacking the CDS for expressing his opinions to Bloomberg instead of speaking out his mind within the country. Ours should not be to glorify war. An experienced senior general currently holding the highest military post of the country must be believed for what he says. They are the people who are responsible for the lives of each and every army, air force and navy personnel. It is easy to sit inside our safe homes and criticize the nation’s military leadership. It is a whole different situation when any close member of our family such as our son, daughter, father or husband is facing artillery fire at the International Border (IB) Posting.
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The Opposition has demanded immediate convening of a special session of the Parliament to discuss the country’s military and foreign policy strategy in the wake of revelations made by the CDS. The Congress party has called on the government to engage all political parties and the nation in discussions regarding India’s defence preparedness and strategy following Operation Sindoor. General Chauhan’s remarks also bring home the point that setbacks are natural in any military conflict, no matter how small or big the adversary is. For instance, a small Ukraine launched a huge drone attack on a Russian airbase some 2000 kms away from the border and successfully destroyed more than 40 Russian fighter jets. Interestingly, the Russian government has gone public accepting the attack and consequent damages. This should make the Indian nationalists who are screaming against General Chauhan realise that modern day warfare is not the same as it was even 20 years ago. In a day and age where rockets, missiles and drones have replaced traditional systems of war, speaking the truth has its benefits. This is not the era of Goebbels where false propaganda holds water for long. What General Chauhan and the Air Chief have said are wakeup calls that should be taken positively by all Indians.
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God forbid but if India gets involved in any major war in the future, the drones and the rockets could be expected in Bombay, Delhi, Calcutta or even Charbatia. Let us not, for a moment, think that we are safe just because we live a few thousand kilometres from the border. War is no child’s play. It is not limited to soldiers hailing from poor families, weapons sourced from abroad or fancy looking shiny jets. War is real life at stake where our young people survive or perish. To quote an old proverb, “There are no winners in war”. There are only the dead or those left behind.
