IESM: Fast for Justice Rally- sixty fifth day

Date: Friday, 20 February, 2009, 10:42 PM
Dear Colleagues,
Bawal (Haryana) contingent retains charge of Jantar Mantar venue.
Medals
Media people have been calling us to know how many medals are likely to be deposited February 21. “Thousands” we have assured them.
The President is not available to meet our delegation tomorrow. My request for an audience has been pending since 24 November 2008. I will keep trying. I am not sure how far she can or will want to go to get us justice. However, we do not wish to let any door remain unknocked.
TV Programme
When Karan Thapar’s programme was aired at 1730 hours today, (to be repeated at 2230 hours on 23 February), I was not close to a facility and did not watch. However, many friends called up to say that we have put across our point well. Lt Gen NS Malik from NOIDA, Air Marshal Prakash Pingale from Pune, Subedar Bhagwan Singh from Sikar, Lt Gen SBS Kochar from Panchkula, Col SS Sohi from Chandigarh, Dr Shabnam Pandit from Guragaon, Maj Gen Das from Lucknow, Col RP Chaturvedi from NOIDA, Lt Gen KD Samantha from Delhi were some of the callers. My grateful thanks to them all. Not that every call was laudatory; there were critics too. For example, during the first commercial break wife Anita called up to point out that I needed to change my hair brush.
Best regards,
Lt Gen (Emeritus) Raj Kadyan
Chairman IESM

Dear Friends,
Jai Hind.
An email received from Lt Gen Raj Kadyan, Chairman IESM, giving IESM SITREP for 20 Feb 09, is reproduced above. No doubt that the show by Gen Kadyan and Gen Surjit on CNBC 18 was excellent. No sooner the programme ended, I started receiving tele calls and emails from Veterans and some civilian friends whom I had asked to see the programme.

The first caller was Maj Gen DN Varma, who wanted me to convey his appreciation and congratulations to Gen Kadyan and Gen Surjit. Next was Lt Col MG Kapoor. I have lost the count of other phone calls. A few of the emails received early are being forwarded to you in my next email. It is not possible to reproduce all the congratulatory emails received.

On behalf of Gen Kadyan and Gen Surjit I thank all the veterans and civilian friends who called on phone and sent emails to congratulate the two IESM leaders for their excellent performance on Karan Thapar's show.

I also thank Mr Karan Thapar for his excellent conduct of the show. We also need to learn some lessons from this CNBC programme. Very composed posture of the two military veterans was really impressive. They were sounding very confident and convincing. On the other hand Shree Tiwari of Congress was so agitated all the time that his statements were not sounding convincing. We also need to make a note that Compare of a TV programme gives very little reaction time and very little time to speak. Therefore, the facts and figures must be handy and memorised to the extent possible. A guess question paper should be prepared and answers rehearsed. The sequence of points for answers to various type of questions should be carefully organised so that the essentials are covered before the Compare tells the speaker to shut up. What more could have been covered if sufficient time was given to Gen Kadyan and Gen Surjit-
On 8th Feb 09, at Jantar Mantar, Gen Kadyan during the talk given by him repeated a statement often made by the babus - "If we give OROP to Defence personnel, others will ask the same". Gen Kadyan's response to this statement was "Yes please give OROP to all those who retire before the age of 60, yes give OROP to all those who join the service with the condition that they are willing to sacrifice their lives while performing service, yes give OROP to those who have been denied the fundamental rights by the Constitution of India, yes give OROP to all those who spend major portion of their young lives away from their families and so on. It was a superb talk by Gen Kadyan. Similarly, if sufficient time was given Gen Surjit while answering a similar question he should have first stated the retirement age of Jawans in stead of officers' first. Before he could mention the retirement age of jawans, the compare cut him short. It is the retirement age of jawans which is most shocking.
Whatever it was -
IT WAS A GRAND SHOW BY KADYAN, SURJIT AND KARAN THAPAR.
Our congratulations to them.
Before finishing the programme Karan Thapar very intelligently made the Congress rep commit that they will soon find a solution to the problem of pension to Defence personnel (words to that effect).
All of you, who are likely to be called on some TV programme in future - please prepare well like Kadyan and Surjit. Anticipate questions, prepare answers in logical sequence and the points in order of importance. Rehearse the script with your friends and let them throw impromptu questions to you. I have a gut feeling that some other channels will soon have similar programmes. So prepare from today onwards.
In Service of Indian Military Veterans
Chander Kamboj.

Dear Sirs,
I watched the program today at 1730 hrs. I was thoroughly impressed with the content and the way Karan handled it. Gen Kadyan was personification of dignity, gentlemanly behaviour, and firmness in his presentation of the case while the spokesperson for UPA presented a sorry image with his lack of knowledge of facts (genuine or otherwise), bad body language, using vocal power to compensate for his convincing abilities etc (I can go on, but cut it short). The only regret I have is that Gen Surjit did not get adequate chance to present the facts which he has gained over two decades of experience with the issue. If we get another chance to have this OROP broadcast my suggestion would be to have a rep of CDA(P) in attendance to refute the kind of data Mr Tiwary was trying to present and mislead the audience the way he tried today. Sirs, I do know I was very critical about the disappointment on the 18th for not being able to see this program. But watching it today I felt that the old saying "Safar ka pal Meeta Hota Hai" to be true here also. My Salute to the Generals and all those who were behind making this programme.
Best Regards,
Col T N Baba (Veteran)