'India's well-timed diversification of Army helped Democracy'


Posted on 20th Mar 2015 01:27 pm by mohit kumar

New Delhi, March 20 (IANS) India's well-timed decision post independence to control and diversify its army helped preserve its democracy, or it could have ended up like Pakistan which has seen three army coups post independence.

Yale university professor Steven I. Wilkinson, in his book "Army and Nation: How India's Founders Made its Army Safe for Democracy" - writes that while the Indian Army at the time of independence was dominated by few martial groups, diversification and modifications in its structure helped the country.

"If you inherit an imbalanced army, chances of a coup are high," Wilkinson said speaking about his book at the India International Center Thursday evening.

The author said in 1929, the army had overwhelmingly warriors from Sikh and Gorkha communities, both martial groups.

"In 1947, the army was still dominated by certain martial groups who made 95 percent of the troops. It was still an imbalanced army, as the British recruited troops from martial roots. These officers were also a closely knit community creating more trouble for politicians," he said.

He however added that India was still in a better position in what it inherited, compared to Pakistan, which had 72 percent of its army from Punjab alone, while thereere only 155 officers from East Pakistan (now Bangladesh).

"The most represented and the least represented (in army) - Punjab and Bengal - were together in Pakistan," he said.

India on the contrary had 32 percent Sikh soldiers, 18 percent from Uttar Pradesh, and 10 percent from erstwhile Bombay province, which he said was more diversified comparatively, while still imbalanced.

The author said, however, India dealt with the issue better than Pakistan.

"India dealt with it better. Pakistan either did not try or did it too late. They could have done a lot in the 1950s," he said.

"India's political leadership felt the army needed immediate attention. (Jawaharlal) Nehru and (Vallabhbhai) Patel were thinking about it as an issue. In Pakistan there was very little thinking about it," he said.

He highlighted that at the time of independence, both Indian and Pakistani armies had a similar background, adding that the Indian Army could have reacted in a similar way as happened in Pakistan had there been political instability here.

"They were trained in the same way, and they kept ties even after partition. Had India slipped into political chaos, they (Indian Army) could have acted similar," he said.

The author also pointed out that despite of the fact that army was dominated by people from Punjab, it was not untill 1961 that the army got its first chief from the Punjab regiment - General Pran Nath Thapar.

Pakistan, since partition, has seen three military coups and several unsuccessful attempts.

It began in 1958, when the first Pakistani president, Iskander Mirza, who had retired as a major general, dismissed parliament and prime minister Feroz Khan Noon, appointing the army chief, General Ayub Khan, as the chief martial law administrator. Thirteen days later, Mirza himself was deposed by Ayub Khan, who appointed himself the president and raised himself to field marshal.

In 1977, Pakistani Army chief General Zia-ul-Haq overthrew prime minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who was later hanged.

In 1999, General Pervez Musharraf overthrew prime minister Nawaz Sharif and and evnetually became the president.

Did you know?Explore Trending and Topic pages for more stories like this.
0 Like 0 Dislike
Previous news Next news
Other news

LSG vs RCB: Kohli can achieve a big achievement in the match against Lucknow, a chance to leave David Warner behind

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) veteran batsman Virat Kohli can achieve a big feat during the m

7 soldiers killed as army vehicle falls into river in Ladakh, Air Force taking injured to hospital

A major accident happened in Ladakh. The army vehicle slipped off the road and fell into the Shyo

26/11 Attack: No Excuse Can Justify Terrorism, UN Secretary-General Pays Tribute to Mumbai Attack Victims

United Nations Secretary-General Antonia Guterres paid tribute to those killed in the 26/11 terro

All flights from New Delhi to Kabul were canceled, Afghanistan closed its airspace

Amid the ongoing turmoil in Afghanistan, national carrier Air India's flight to Kabul has been re

How can we stop the third wave of corona? The scientific advisor of the Central Government replied

Principal Scientific Adviser of the Central Government, who warned of the arrival of the third wa

USA vs PAK: Babar Azam's pain spilled after the defeat against America, told which three shortcomings caused the match to be lost

America made a big upset by winning the Super Over against Pakistan on Thursday. Under the T20 Wo

Munawar Faruqui in the custody of Mumbai Police late at night, the comedian was caught in a raid on a hookah bar.

Munawar Faruqui Detained: It seems that the police are keeping a close watch on the winners of 'B

Arvind Kejriwal: Kejriwal is reading books in Tihar Jail, spending most of his time doing yoga and meditating.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is spending most of his time in Tihar Jail meditating, readi

CM Yogi said: Those who are getting VVIP treatment are spreading false propaganda about Maha Kumbh, 45 crore people have already taken a bath

On the occasion of the death anniversary of Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay, Chief Minister Yogi Aditya

Who will handle the captaincy of Rohit Sharma-Virat Kohli on the tour of Sri Lanka? These three names lead the race

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President Sourav Ganguly on Sunday announced tha

Sign up to write
Sign up now if you have flare of writing..
Login   |   Register
Follow Us
Indyaspeak @ Facebook Indyaspeak @ Twitter Indyaspeak @ Pinterest RSS



Play Free Quiz and Win Cash