Indians took to social media platforms on April 3rd to celebrate the 106th birth anniversary of the fearless field marshal Sam Manekshaw. Manekshaw is known for his commanding role as Chief of the Army Staff in 1971 and for having fought five wars during his four-decade-long military career. “I don’t interfere in your politics as long as you don’t interfere in the army”: these are the words that remind us of Manekshaw’s courage, determination and neutrality. He always believed that the Indian Army is a venerated institution that should not be interfered in or impeded by external forces such as. As the Fourth Estate, the media provides a forum for public transparency, which is necessary for legitimacy and accountability in certain instances and plays the role of a watchdog. This obviously helps increase understanding and knowledge about the military among an uninformed public.
But with this level of freedom of press in the 21st century, come many problems as well. With the doors open for the foreign media to invade India with their ideas and experiment with the Indian youth, the government takes steps to bring in a regulation to control the widespread electronic media. Many a time, this hampers the National security when the Defence and other critical subjects come under the media’s purview. For the preservation of territorial sovereignty and integrity, it is important to have a responsive media. But often, foreign deals or trades conducted by the country secretly in the public interest are reported by our proactive and independent media. In light of the recent capture and thereafter release of Indian Airforce wing commander Abhinandan Varthaman, all information we could receive about our national hero’s safety was through the media channels, no doubt. At the same time, many fake accounts of the pilot were created to spread fake propaganda. Quite often, the media’s desire for early and quick reporting results in access to classified military information by enemies. Indian adversaries gain by spreading false reports and misleading information to erode public support for the military thereafter.
Therefore relations of media-military have been tense in the recent past. Military distrust of the media has only exacerbated in recent years with the trend of retired generals seeking a second career in domestic politics and joining parties of their choice. Recent incidents involving media personalities such as the ex-Chief of Army Staff Bipin Rawat taking a stand on the CAA-NRC fuelled protests and debates. Many have juxtaposed this situation with the recent swearing-in of Ranjan Gogoi as a Rajya Sabha MP. Although civil servants and politicos exist side by side and are allowed to comment on current happenings in the country in whatever capacity, military professionals are supposed to abide by principles of honor, integrity, and loyalty as laid down in the constitution. This is because the sanctity of the institution has to be maintained and the boundaries have to be respected. A retired Lt. General Praveen Bakshi spoke to Times India in this context and said that “You could see military being increasingly drawn in and ultimately, in the long run, everybody understands it that it is going to impact your impartiality, it is going to impact your apolitical character“. He also said, “I am glad that the Indian armed forces have not been politicised yet, but it is at the germination stage and it may flower later.”
What our public deserves today are a free press and a strong & accountable military. They must coexist. Freedom of the press and democracy work best when the two entities work in tandem with each other. It is true that with no media, the government and military could run amok without any public scrutiny. But there has been a lack of empathetic and nuanced military-themed shows and television is definitely lacking in complex depictions in the military services. Media today has been able to profit from depictions of the military, but it does so without showing any stereotypical narratives. Somewhere between soldiers dying at borders and “patriotic correctness”, our society has pre-determined the expressions of respect without any true engagement or understanding for the military personnel and their families. The familiarity gap often means service members and veterans are expected to conform to existing stereotypes of bravery regardless of their own emotions. Along with their duty as soldiers, they are human beings at heart and feel the same emotions as other people do and this where the media makes them robot-controlled army men, whose only job is to pick up a gun and fire. Media portrayal of families in the service is often glorified and superficial, omitting the trauma of separation and loss of a loved one. People conform to the patriotic action hero image of a military man and often refuse to acknowledge the varied and complex identities and experiences of those who serve. People still believe that all wars are fought at the borders and fantasize mortal combat with jingoism, all thanks to movies and entertainment channels. These misconceptions often imagine and expect the military to be something it is not. Fallen soldiers return home as heroes who sacrificed for their country, but no one hears about those gravely injured by friendly fire, those whose lives are in shambles because of PTSD, or even of the innocent men, women and children who perished in air raids. Many soldiers who face any physical disability after a war often commit suicide as their macho-ness can only are justified by remaining fit in the services. Only by censoring the reality of conflict and by hiding the true human costs of war can the government maintain a romanticized image of the military. Advertisements about joining any of the tri-services in India also arouse a great level of excitement or ‘josh’ amongst our youth. But the fact remains that real-life events may sometimes not be that interesting. It is vital to learn lessons of discipline from our army men but the portrayal of a wholesome army man or a family man by the media is problematic. Filmmakers go to great lengths to show us how committed and courageous soldiers are. As long as the glorification is authentic and honest, there is no problem. The dichotomy arises when you ride on such glorification for political gains. There are definitely some good movies in Bollywood that talk about the actual role of the military in any operation rather than feed off on the sympathy aspect. But majority films take creative licence and dramatize and exaggerate events in movies we have seen. This is where the media needs to have a fair judgment and ethics while practicing journalism. At the same time, the general public should also be more media literate and understand fact from fiction.
Tanya Mittal, a writer at Itisaras is currently pursuing her undergraduate degree in History from Lady Shri Ram College, University of Delhi. Belonging to an armed forces family, she has had an opportunity to appreciate the vibrancy that India offers. She is an avid reader and wishes to pursue a career in International Relations.