National Security Advisor J N Dixit has said that following the defection of Rabinder Singh, a joint secretary of the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the Government is undertaking a ‘‘fundamental review’’ of the functioning of the external intelligence agency. Dixit, speaking for the first time on the disappearance of Singh — it was first reported by The Indian Express — has said the review will be a major exercise, handled primarily by M K Narayanan, former director of the Intelligence Bureau and a special advisor to the Prime Minister. ‘‘The review will look into the need for restructuring and reforming the agency and will also cover other aspects such as recruitment and training methods. It will be a fundamental review of the functioning of the organisation,’’ says Dixit. Dixit says the Government has a ‘‘general idea’’ of where the dismissed officer is residing. ‘‘We are in constant touch with our counterparts in the US over this issue and inquiries are on to get to know his whereabouts.’’ Dixit has also confirmed the receipt of a preliminary report on the incident prepared by the Cabinet Secretariat and admitted it contained a list of 20-odd officers of the agency who could not be traced. But he says this should not be a cause for alarm. ‘‘Defection and cross-overs are a problems faced by intelligence agencies all over the world. These many number of officers crossing over in 40 years is nothing to get worried about,’’ he says. ‘‘If you check on the history of the KGB and the CIA, you will see that the number of defections in these agencies over a similar period is far higher.’’ Asked about reports of several RAW officials settling in foreign countries after retirement, Dixit says these aspects are now going to be examined. ‘‘We will be looking at the ground rules applied by the Government. We will see whether it is justified to have a two-year cooling off period only after which officials holding sensitive posts in Government can take up such assignments,’’ he says.
