‘There Are Other Means’: Ajit Doval Says He Doesn't Use Mobile Phones, Internet

National Security Adviser Ajit Doval revealed that he largely avoids using phones and the internet for communicating with officials, adding that there are “other means of communication” that common people

do not know.

Responding to a question about how he communicates in an era of mobile phones and social media at the Viksit Bharat Young Leaders Dialogue, Doval said, “I don’t know how you came to know that I don’t use phones. Yes, it is true that I don’t use the internet or phones, apart from personal or family.”

“Sometimes, I have to use them. I have to contact people abroad. But I manage without them. There are several methods of communication, and some additional methods have to be arranged that are not known to the public,” he added.

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Doval, a 1968 batch IPS officer with an illustrious career in intelligence, internal security and counter-terrorism roles, urged young Indians to draw strength from history to rebuild the nation and work towards creating a strong and great India based on its own values, rights, and beliefs.

The NSA invoked the struggles and sacrifices of freedom fighters like Mahatma Gandhi, Subhash Chandra Bose and Bhagat Singh to underscore India’s painful struggle for independence. “You are lucky that you were born in an independent India. I was born in a colonised India. Our ancestors fought for independence and went through so many trials and tribulations. They made great sacrifices for it. They endured great humiliation and experienced periods of profound helplessness. Many people faced the gallows,” he said.

“Our villages were burned. Our civilisation was destroyed. Our temples were looted, and we watched helplessly as silent spectators. This history presents us with a challenge that every young person in India today should have the fire within them. The word ‘revenge’ isn’t ideal, but revenge itself is a powerful force. We have to take revenge for our history. We have to take this country back to where we can build a great India based on our rights, our ideas, and our beliefs,” he added.

Doval stressed the need for strong leadership, which he said has been demonstrated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “We had a highly developed civilisation. We didn’t destroy anyone’s temples. We didn’t go and loot anywhere. We didn’t attack any country or any foreign people when the rest of the world was very backward. But we failed to understand the threats to our security and to ourselves. History taught us a lesson when we remained indifferent to them,” he stressed.

He also said every conflict in the world is born out of security concerns. “You see any conflict in the world right now, it is about imposing one’s terms on the other country for security,” he said.

The NSA began his address on a lighter note, saying he was surprised by the invitation to address the youth, remarking that most of them were at least 60 years younger than him. Drawing from his “lived experiences”, he advised youngsters to be decisive and disciplined.