‘MO directorate advised Gen Vaidya not to use Army for operation in Golden Temple'

Indian Express

3 days ago

Former Army Chief General VN Sharma (retd) has made a startling revelation that the Military Operations Directorate had advised the then Army Chief General AS Vaidya that the Indian Army should not get involved in any operation to flush out Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and his supporters from the Golden Temple as it was a political move.
General VN Sharma has made this statement in the course of an interview to a former Judge Advocate General of the Army, Maj Gen Nilendra Kumar, on a YouTube channel-Lex Consilium Foundation. The interview was uploaded on the channel on June 5, a day ahead of the 41st anniversary of Operation Blue Star and has generated considerable number of views and comments.
The 95-year-old General VN Sharma was serving as Additional Director General Military Operations (ADGMO) in the Military Operations (MO) directorate at the time Op Blue Star was launched. Lt Gen CN Somanna was the Director General Military Operations (DGMO) at the time while Maj Gen (later Lt Gen) VK Nayar was the other Additional Director General Military Operations in the directorate. Both, Somanna and Nayar have passed away many years back.
Gen Sharma says in the interview that the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi wanted the Army to carry out the operation inside Golden Temple because the Punjab Police had refused to do so. 'Arun Vaidya was called to the Prime Minister's Office and was told that Bhindranwale had to be removed because he was getting too big for his boots, he doesn't listen to anyone so take the Army in. General Vaidya said okay,' Gen Sharma recalls.
He says the Army Chief then arrived at the MO directorate and spoke to the DGMO and the two ADGMOs regarding the task to be done. 'We suggested to him that this was not a correct employment of the Indian Army. We explained that according to the Constitution the Indian Army cannot be used for political purposes by any government,' said Gen Sharma.
He goes on to say that the then PM wanted the Army to do the task because the police had refused. 'So we told General Vaidya that it was not politically expedient because we cannot use the military for political purposes. She did a political stunt to put Bhindranwale there and now she was doing another political stunt to remove him by force using the Army since the police has refused,' says General Sharma in the interview. General Sharma goes on to say that the Army Chief General Vaidya was told my the three senior-most MO directorate officers that some other force like BSF, CRPF should be used and the Army should not intervene.
'He said she is the boss and when the boss says to jump you have to jump. We said no. You are a constitutional authority, the Army Chief, you have to ensure that the constitution is not violated. One option is to go to the Supreme Court and ask them as to whether this is legal or not legal. He said what do you expect me to do. We suggested that he go to her and tell her that it is not Army's job,' said General Sharma.
The former Army Chief then goes on to say that General Vaidya went back to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and told her the view of the MO Directorate. He said that the PM then decided to approach the Western Army Commander Lt Gen K Sundarji directly in order to get the operation conducted since the Chief was reluctant.
'Vaidya's office told Sundarji to go meet the Prime Minister. He (Vaidya) came back to the MO directorate and told this has happened. We said sir 'maaf karo' you have no business to allow an Army Commander to go directly to the Prime Minister,' he said.
General Sharma said the MO directorate was in touch with the staff of the Prime Minister's Office and came to know that General Sundarji had been asked to conduct the operation. 'When he (Sundarji) came out of there we rang him up and said that you may like to step into the MO directorate and discuss this issue with us. He said I am not interested in you people, I have got my orders and I am going to do it,' said General Sharma.
The former Army Chief further says that the decision to use 9 Infantry Division, headquartered in Meerut was that of General Sundarji himself and not the MO directorate. He added that Sundarji's first choice was to approach GOC 15 Division (Maj Gen Jamwal) to do the task but he refused. 'Sundarji asked him to produce a battalion of infantry and some support some tanks or something to take on this job, he refused. He said it was a political situation and not for Army to get intervened,' said General Sharma. He says General Sundarji thereafter chose 9 Division commanded by Major General KS Brar and that one of the reasons was that he wanted Sikhs conducting Operation Blue Star and taking part in actual action on ground.
During the course of the interview General Sharma also holds forth on the ethos of Indian Army training and obeying a lawful command. 'The Indian Army officers training during command is to be an independent officer. If you find something wrong don't do it. It is not a question of disobedience of orders. It is a question of obeying orders despite their better sense, because they are yes men and they want their promotion,' he said.
General VN Sharma's remarks are bound to create a stir and the aspect of MO directorate opposing the use of Army has never been discussed in public.