21-05-2025
Who Was EAM Jaishankar's Father? Know His Role In India's Nuclear Doctrine & Kargil War
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In 1999, K. Subrahmanyam led the Kargil Review Committee, which proposed reforms in India's intelligence services and recommended the creation of the Chief of Defence Staff post
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has strengthened the nation's foreign policy, earning recognition from foreign diplomats for his adeptness. This prowess is perhaps unsurprising, given his lineage; Jaishankar's father, K. Subrahmanyam, was a distinguished IAS officer and staunch nationalist.
Post the Kargil war, the then Vajpayee government appointed K. Subrahmanyam as chairman of the Kargil War Review Committee. His recommendations profoundly shaped India's nuclear doctrine, advocating the principle of 'no first use' for nuclear weapons—a stance India continues to uphold.
Subrahmanyam also suggested pivotal changes in the Intelligence Department and recommended the creation of the post of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), a position later established by the Narendra Modi government.
K. Subrahmanyam's influence spanned various areas of national security. In an interview, S. Jaishankar shared that Indira Gandhi had removed his father from the post of Union Secretary. Even during Rajiv Gandhi's tenure, Subrahmanyam did not receive the recognition he deserved. Despite this, he enjoyed the trust of many Prime Ministers and remained a highly respected expert in geopolitical affairs.
S Jaishankar shared in the interview that in 1982 his father, K. Subrahmanyam, was Secretary of Defence Production Affairs when Indira Gandhi came to power. He was the first secretary to be removed from his post during her tenure. Notably, Subrahmanyam declined the Padma Bhushan award, believing that bureaucrats and journalists should not accept such honours.
In a 2009 Indian Express article, Subrahmanyam wrote, 'No country has campaigned for nuclear disarmament as vigorously as India, which was ultimately forced to declare itself a nuclear weapon state due to its extremely fragile security position. Almost universally, this perception has acted as a deterrent. India's nuclear doctrine is based on this premise."
Kargil War Review Committee
In 1999, Subrahmanyam chaired the Kargil Review Committee set up by the government after the war with Pakistan. The committee recommended changes to the Indian intelligence services and the creation of the CDS post. These recommendations were adopted by the Narendra Modi government in December 2019.
Subrahmanyam also criticised the Vajpayee government's decision to merge the roles of Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister and National Security Advisor, a separation later reinstated by the Manmohan Singh government in 2004.
First Published:
May 21, 2025, 18:36 IST
