Anita Katyal | Who Will Doval Anoint As CDS? Is Govt Avoiding Proper Debates?

While the ongoing war in West Asia is predictably being hotly discussed by defence personnel here these days, officers of the three services are equally busy trying to second guess the name of the next Chief of Defence Staff. The term of the current incumbent Gen. Anil Chauhan ends this May. Coincidentally, Army chief Gen. Upendra Dwivedi and Naval chief Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi will also be retiring over the next couple of months. Needless to say, hectic lobbying is on for the coveted post of CDS with the current Army and Navy chiefs eyeing this high-profile position. However, they could well be beaten to it if national security adviser Ajit Doval carries the day.

The NSA’s military adviser Lt Gen. S. Raja Subramani is being talked about as a strong contender, especially since Gen. Chauhan held the same post when he was made CDS. Both Gen. Chauhan and the first CDS, late Gen. Bipin Rawat, were known to be Mr Doval’s choices. It is no coincidence that like the NSA, the two officers belong to Uttarakhand. If the government does appoint a retired Army general as CDS, it could lead to rumblings among the other services over the Army’s dominance. Since the post of CDS was created to promote greater collaboration among the three services, it is argued that it is only right that the post now be given to someone from the Navy or Air Force.

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat inaugurated the Jeevan Deep Ashram at Vrindavan last week. A host of dignitaries and senior leaders were present on the occasion. Interestingly, former governors Arif Mohammad Khan and Bhagat Singh Koshyari were among those who attended the programme. Others spotted on the occasion included Madhya Pradesh chief minister Mohan Yadav and Uttar Pradesh deputy chief minister Brajesh Pathak. While Mr Pathak’s attendance sparked discussion about chief minister Yogi Adityanath’s absence on the occasion, Mohan Yadav’s presence was seen as Mr Bhagwat’s outreach to younger BJP leaders. Mr Khan is currently at a loose end after his two stints as governor in Kerala and Bihar. Though it is the BJP bosses who decide on appointments, it definitely helps to be seen by the RSS chief just so he is not “out of sight is out of mind”. Unlike Mr Khan, Mr Koshyari is an RSS veteran. But obviously he also felt the need to be noticed and remembered by Mr Bhagwat. You never know when opportunity knocks next.

Last week, Samajwadi Party’s Rajya Sabha member Jaya Bachchan drew the attention of the House to the inconvenience caused when roads are closed and traffic diverted because of “VIP movement”. She was particularly incensed as these restrictions have now been extended to the Parliament House premises. Doors are abruptly shut and even MPs are not allowed to leave or enter the building when the Prime Minister and other top leaders are arriving or leaving. Jaya Bachchan also recounted how it took her an hour to reach Parliament one day because of the restrictions on vehicular traffic. There is also a back story to this. Apparently, Jaya Bachchan, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Renuka Chaudhary were all set to go out for lunch together but they were kept waiting for nearly 30 minutes as their cars were not allowed to reach Shardul Dwar, the gate used by MPs to enter the building. And the members could not step out as they had been locked in because the Prime Minister’s cavalcade was passing by. After she raised this issue, many MPs came up to Jaya Bachchan later in the lobby to congratulate her. Surprisingly, several BJP MPs also joined, saying she had given voice to their concerns as they could not speak out.

Jaya Bachchan may have a personal reason for raising the issue of Delhi’s VIP culture but she was right when she pointed out this is the first time that MPs are not allowed to leave or enter Parliament when the Prime Minister arrives for the session. But this is not the only “first” in Parliament. It appears the Modi government has taken a policy decision not to agree to a structured debate on key subjects, particularly if the Opposition demands one. For instance, the Opposition has been pushing for a discussion on the ongoing West Asia conflict but the government instead opted for statements by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and external affairs minister S. Jaishankar. There is a convention in the Rajya Sabha allowing members to seek clarifications when the government makes a suo motu statement but this was disallowed by the presiding officers. Then again, the post of Deputy Speaker has been lying vacant since 2019, the longest such vacancy in Parliamentary history. The Deputy Speaker’s position is offered to an MP who is not from the ruling party. The Modi government obviously did not want the Congress to get this post. It could have offered it to one of its alliance partners. But that was not to be.