SHIMLA/NEW DELHI: Major Gaurav Arya,Retd has launched a scathing attack on a section of protesters associated with the CJP-led demonstration at Jantar Mantar for allegedly abusing the Indian Army, saying the remarks were particularly disturbing because they came in July—the month when the nation remembers the sacrifices of its soldiers during the Kargil War.
Arya’s video criticising the protesters has gone viral on social media, drawing strong reactions over the alleged use of abusive language against the armed forces.
While making it clear that he fully supports the constitutional right to protest, Arya said there could be no justification for dragging the Army into a political demonstration.
“Protest. Absolutely. Protest again, protest ten times, protest a hundred times. That is your right,” Arya said, emphasising that citizens have a constitutional right to protest against the government, demand accountability and even seek a minister’s resignation.
“But where did abusing the Indian Army come from?” he asked.
Arya was particularly critical of the timing of the alleged remarks. July is observed as the month of Kargil remembrance, culminating in Kargil Vijay Diwas on July 26, when the country pays tribute to the soldiers who fought and died in the 1999 Kargil conflict.
He reminded the protesters that while they were exercising their right to demonstrate in the capital, Indian soldiers had historically stood guard so that ordinary citizens could live safely and exercise those very freedoms.
Arya said the soldier does not necessarily know the individual citizen whose security he protects, yet remains willing to lay down his life for the nation.
“He doesn't know you, but he is willing to give his life for you,” was the thrust of Arya’s emotional argument.
He invoked the sacrifices of the Kargil heroes and said soldiers never claimed that their service was a favour to the people. Their sacrifice, he stressed, was their duty towards the motherland.
Arya also questioned the upbringing of those who allegedly abused the Army, asking what kind of values were being imparted to young people if insulting soldiers had become acceptable in the name of protest.
At the same time, he drew a clear distinction between dissent and disrespect.
“You can protest against the government. You can demand a minister’s resignation. That is your right. But where did the Indian Army come into this?” he asked.
Arya also criticised the invocation of revolutionary poetry and figures without understanding their historical context, arguing that merely quoting poets such as Faiz Ahmed Faiz to appear revolutionary or “cool” without understanding their struggles and history was superficial.
He suggested that those who allegedly abused the armed forces, along with their parents, should be taken on an educational visit to the National War Memorial or a military establishment—not as punishment, but to understand the sacrifices of India's soldiers.
“No punishment, nothing. Take them and their parents on a visit to the National War Memorial. Let them understand what the Indian Armed Forces do,” he said.
Arya’s remarks have sparked a wider social-media debate. His central argument, however, remained that the right to protest is fundamental to democracy, but that right should not be used as a licence to insult the soldiers who defend the country.
His anger was amplified by the timing: as the country was saluting its Kargil heroes and remembering those who never returned home, alleged abuse of the Army at a public protest, he argued, was particularly insensitive.
