Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi (SR)
New Delhi, Apr 10: Lt Gen DS Hooda, the surgical strike mastermind, has been accused of leaking details of a report on revamping the Indian Army. The controversy emerged on Tuesday April 9 when the chairperson of National Security Advisory Board PS Raghavan, at a lecture on 'National Security Institutions: Tackling Emerging Challenge', accused Lt Gen (retd) DS Hooda, for breaching the terms of the agreement on the report that he was preparing for the NSAB.
Lt Gen DS Hooda is the former Northern Army Commander under whose observation the 2016 surgical strikes after the Uri terror attack were conducted.
As per India Today report, While giving a lecture on 'National Security Institutions: Tackling Emerging Challenge' NSAB chairperson PS Raghavan said that Lt Gen (retd) Hooda had contravened the terms of the agreement on the report that he was preparing for the NSAB. Raghavan rendered the speech on a programme organised by the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA).
"We were the people who asked Lt Gen Hooda to prepare the report. It was the NSAB. He actually contravened the terms of the agreement by going public with it. He was not supposed to do it. He gives me a report on which he writes secret and writes copy number 1, 2 and 3. Then he goes to the next Manekshaw Centre conference and says this is what he has said (in the report)," said PS Raghavan.
The NSAB chairperson spoke about Lt Gen Hooda 'divulging' details of a classified document when he was asked a query regarding the Task Force report that Lt Gen Hooda had prepared for the Congress.
Later, Lt Gen Hooda refused the allegations pointed out by Raghavan and said he has no recollection of any conference where he revealed the details of the said report.
Lt Gen Hooda said, "We should not let accusations fly loose. There was no seminar in Manekshaw Centre where I spoke about the report that had been submitted to the NSAB. If there is even one person who can certify that I spoke and divulged details in that seminar then I am at fault, else Raghavan should take back his words."
In 2018 November he submitted the report on 'right-sizing' of the Indian Army to the National Security Advisory Board.
There have been many media reports regarding the content of the report; however none of that says Lt Gen Hooda revealed details of the report.
In some media it has been reported that Lt Gen Hooda‘s report had recommended the possibility of downsizing the 1.2-million strong Indian Army by creating a reserve force that can be called up during war to make the Special Forces (SF) a strategic resource and setting up a new directorate to accelerate technology induction.
"It was just an additional report on right-sizing of the Indian Army. There were a number of issues that had to be taken up and discussed with a variety of people before we could give advice to the government," Ragavan said.
In March this year, Lt Gen Hooda submitted a 'comprehensive report' on national security to Congress president Rahul Gandhi.
"Congress president had constituted a task force which was headed by me on national security. I have prepared a national security strategy document and today submitted it to the Congress president," General Hooda had said after submitting the report.
In his tweet Congress President Rahul Gandhi thanked the retired general and his team for their efforts. "Lt Gen (retd) DS Hooda and his team have put together a comprehensive report on India's national security that he presented to me today. This exhaustive report will at first be discussed and debated within the Congress party," he tweeted.