Muslim Headcount in Armed Forces

Country is the only religion of
a soldier : Ex-servicemen

A soldier lays down his life unhesitatingly to defend the honour, integrity and security of the country. His devotion to duty and obedience of orders even in the face of death differentiates him from his compatriots hailing from other walks of life.

Aconclave of Defence Services Veterans, members of Akhil Bharatiya Poorva Sainik Seva Parishad and Sainik Kalyan Manch has expressed its anguish and anxiety over the UPA Government’s directions to Service Headquarters to undertake a survey of serving Muslim soldiers, sailors and airmen of all ranks, being undertaken by the Prime Minister’s Office at the behest of a committee appointed by the government under the Chairmanship of Shri Rajinder Sachar, a retired Delhi High Court Judge.

On February 15, 2006, a large gathering of Ex-Servicemen from Delhi and surrounding areas collected in Delhi to register their protest with the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of India. They included all ranks of the services, including some very senior retired officers of the rank of Generals, Air Marshals and Admirals.

It was a great nostalgic moment when the programme commenced with the laying of wreaths at the Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate on behalf of the three services veterans paying homage to the brave hearts “who gave their today for our tomorrow.” Thereafter, a meeting addressed by the veterans was held at Jantar Mantar,. They stressed the need for maintaining the secular and apolitical character of the armed forces. It was brought out by the speakers that the Army gives equal chance to everyone aspiring to serve in the armed forces and that the entry system is based on merit and capability to perform various duties. Armed forces do not discriminate on grounds of religion, caste, creed, region or language, they said. All ranks live, eat, play and work as a well knit and highly motivated family without a thought given to each other’s religious faiths. Our armed forces attract volunteers; there are no quotas in the services for enrolment or promotion on religious basis. Collection of such data would send wrong signals to the soldier and can prove to be the divisive force in the long run.

The assertion by the aforesaid Sachar Committee that “the military is no different from any other central government organisation” could not be farther from the truth, considering the following:-

A soldier lays down his life unhesitatingly to defend the honour, integrity and security of the country. His devotion to duty and obedience of orders even in the face of death differentiates him from his compatriots hailing from other walks of life.

It was vividly brought out that the greatest motivating factor for a soldier is not merely patriotism which propels him, but also the “Paltan ki Izzat” and pride in not letting his comrades down. That is what, in a broad sense, is the ‘Regimental spirit’ that the army is so proud of. It is this spirit that inspires a soldier to willingly assault up the icy slopes of a rugged mountain, unmindful of the hail of bullets. It is not because he is the highly paid and therefore money cannot be the motive.

The gathering of Ex-servicemen from Delhi and surrounding areas was addressed by Lt. General N.S. Malik, Chairman Conclave of Defence Veterans, Lt. General K.K. Nanda, President Akhil Bhartiya Poorva Sainik Sewa Parishad, Maj. General I.C. Malhotra, President Sainik Kalyan Manch.

Others who spoke, attended and laid wreaths at Amar Jawan Jyoti were Air Marshal M.S. Bawa, General V.N. Sharma, Lt. General S.K. Sharma, Lt. General R.P. Agarwal, Lt. General R.N. Chadha, Lt. General R.K. Sawheny, Brig. Kr. Narinder Singh, Colonel A.R. Khan, Subedar Bhati, Sgt B.C. Banwal and many others.