Letter to Smt Sonia Gandhi by Maj Gen NC Khanna

Hi every one,

I am enclosing a letter I sent to Smt Sonia Gandhi some time back. You may find it of interest. The earlier paras have been specifically written that at least then it may be put up to her.

... EDITED ...

I am away from Delhi for 6 weeks.

With kindest regards and God bless.

Nimmi Khanna
(Maj Gen NC Khanna, 4th IMA Course, Gunner, Former GOC 2 Mtn Div, 1979-81)
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COPY OF LETTER SENT TO Smt SONIA GANDHI
By Maj Gen NC Khanna


The grief and hurt at losing a pure and a great soul still persists, in you at a very personal level, and in the nation substantially even if remotely. At the time of the loss we could not fathom then the reason and purpose but the Divine hand has surreptitiously and in a hidden way slowly started revealing His grand design.

Unbelievable as it may seem I inexplicably vision you as another Mother Theresa sent here from a far away land to tackle and reduce the kaleidoscopic miseries of India.

I am very much older than you and elder to all your cabinet. I therefore take the liberty to send you my blessings in your endeavours.

In recent months the happiness and cheerfulness I see on your face after decades of sorrow and grief truly reveal my faith in the Divine.

I therefore write this to you.

The nation today is pursuing the path of self destruction. The lackadaisical slow and tardy judicial system has created a law of the jungle pattern of governance. This is fully being exploited by the corrupt politician, the non accountable bureaucracy and the criminal.

Surprisingly and regrettably and in full awareness of the numerous cracks in our fragile national structure, we have in recent years even started demoralizing our prime saviour, the nation’s military power.

In recent months the Supreme Court has passed a number of adverse judgments castigating the Government. It even went to the extent of mentioning ‘Don’t treat Army men like beggars’. One needs to identify the sadistic genii whose constant design it has been to deny the Armed Forces their lawful rights. They have time and again appealed against every favourable judgment received by the Armed Forces from the high courts, and taken it up to the Supreme Court and thereafter suffer embarrassment. They by so doing have shamed the government on numerous occasions during the last 6 months at being castigated by the highest court of the land. This attitude has been causing unending avoidable agony to the servicemen and merits serious investigation, correction and punishment of the mala fide decision makers in such serious matters. The veterans have endlessly been so humiliated.

The nation’s leaders appear to have completely forgotten that their armed forces are their prime and exclusive instrument that upholds a nation’s sovereignty and should therefore constantly receive their sympathy and succor. Our leaders unquestionably appear to have become a prey to the cunningly mischievous ploy being employed that keeping the armed forces down in their pays, promotions and their correct precedence’s, was the best ways to prevent an army take over. You probably are not aware of what Katauliya advised King Chandragupta on soldiers and soldiering two centuries ago. Please read it. It speaks wisdom and in volumes.

It baffles one to observe that an apolitical Supreme Commander declined to repeatedly meet delegations of eminent and decorated veterans who so very respectfully and peacefully came personally to bring their grievances to the notice of their apolitical Supreme Commander.

In total disbelief and after being unjustly humiliated, they handed over in grief, their family heirlooms, 30,000 medals of courage and valour, to a junior official of H.E. the Supreme Commander for safe custody. On the last occasion they decided not to be humiliated any further and declined to hand over the additional thousands of medals they had brought, preferring to take them back.

This was the height of indignity inflicted upon the most valourous national elite of the past six decades who decade after decade had done the nation proud by their selflessness and devotion to their motherland, brought laurels to it in the 1949 J&K war, in the 1965 and of course the 1971 wars with Pakistan; suppressed a number of police mutinies, and came unhesitatingly in aid of civil power to camouflage the grievous and multiple inadequacies of bureaucratic and political governance. They not only upheld India’s security but also ensured that political leaders continued their pursuits from air conditioned sanctuaries and in safety.

As an anguished citizen it is my business to bring to your notice the fact that the umbilical chord between the veteran and the serving soldier is as strong if not stronger as that of mother and child. The trespass upon one is liable to have a deep impact upon the other and has the latent potential of undesirable consequences.

It is my hope that the your capable officials who undertake the sieving of citizen’s views before putting up the ‘true facts’ to our decision making top most leaders do not suppress the core of my message and just highlight its peripheral husk.

I am enclosing self explanatory thoughts of a humble but a proud citizen which shall startle you, so please go through these even at risk of being enlightened about the likelihood of the shroud of shame that the nation may soon be coerced to wear as a stigma of its incompetence.

I am sending copies of this letter to the Prime Minister, the Finance Minister, the Home Minister, the Defence Minister, the Foreign Minister and the Chiefs of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.

With kindest regards and God bless.

Yours Sincerely

N.C.Khanna
Maj Gen(retd)


Shrimati Sonia Gandhi
Congress President.
10 Janpath
New Delhi 110001

Copy to

The Honorable Prime Minister of India
New Delhi 110001

The Honorable Finance Minister of India
New Delhi 110011.

The Honorable Home Minister
New Delhi 110011.

The Honorable Defence Minister
New Delhi 110011.

The Honorable Foreign Minister
New Delhi 110011.

The Honorable Chief of the Army Staff
New Delhi 110011.

The Honorable Chief of the Naval Staff
New Delhi 110011.

The Honorable Chief of the Air Staff
New Delhi 110011.
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