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Ashok K Mehta
Ashok K Mehta is a retired Lt General of the Indian Army. He writes extensively on defence matters and anchors Defence Watch on Doordarshan
Military might & slight
Implicating war heroes in coup conspiracies, assassination plots and contrived misdemeanours for political reasons undermines the health of Sri Lanka’s military With no effective Government in Sri Lanka after the soft coup by President Maithripala Sirisena on October 26, a floor test for the two prime ministerial claimants scheduled on November...
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Making Germany great again?
24 October 2018 | Ashok K Mehta -
Standing in defence of our soldiers
10 October 2018 | Ashok K Mehta -
Seeking the plane truth about Rafale deal
26 September 2018 | Ashok K Mehta -
In remembrance of a versatile General
12 September 2018 | Ashok K Mehta -
US desperate to win race in Afghanistan
29 August 2018 | Ashok K Mehta -
Rafale cocktail continues to fox us
15 August 2018 | Ashok K Mehta -
Sneak peek into Naya Pakistan
01 August 2018 | Ashok K Mehta
Chimera around the Quad quandary
India has to play the balancing act. It must constructively engage with the US and China to preserve its strategic autonomy through multi-alignment After the second India-China Maritime Affairs Dialogue held in Beijing last week, it was made clear to China that the evolving India-Pacific strategy was not aimed at China’s...
Mastering the art of politicisation
Surgical strikes have been used to the hilt by the BJP which prides itself on its commitment to the military and national security. With the launch of the video, it is at it again It is unfortunate that the already politicisedissue of surgical strikes against terror camps in PoK was revived...
Will Nepal choose India over China?
It seems China and India may cohabit in Nepal with the advantage slowly returning to New Delhi provided it acts to mitigate excesses of the blockade The mood of optimism in Nepal is palpable. The grand old party, Nepali Congress has been severely marginalised after its election debacle. The leftists/Communists are...
A fighting General, a thinking man
An epitome of courage, Zorawar Chand Bakshi did not know the meaning of fear. As Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw would have said: He was either lying or he was a Gorkha The pity is that despite India having fought many wars, skirmishes, counter insurgencies and counter-terrorism operations than any other country,...
Dangers of using the Army as a prop
The apolitical nature of the military is a pillar of India's democratic institutions; it enables loyalty to the Constitution. The political class should ensure it remains the same The Modi Government will be celebrating four years of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas this week. It might be useful to factor military lessons...
Failing on defence planning, as always
The DPC is too little too late and appears to be an attempt to obfuscate defence planning and higher political management. Missing defence reforms have to be forced top down, overruling babucracy Four years after coming to office, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led Government hurled a surprise at the defence...
Busting myth around the Bajwa Doctrine
Just like there is no ‘Doval Doctrine’, the ‘Bajwa Doctrine’ is also non-existent. It is a misnomer; at best it’s a storm in a teacup The much-bandied Bajwa Doctrine is a misnomer. At best, it’s a storm in a teacup. Either a journalist in Pakistan has coined this term or...
