The First Defence Scam of India

This video looks into the lesser-known origins of defence corruption in independent India, focusing on the 1948 Jeep scandal involving Krishna Menon. It connects the dots between early post-colonial administrative decisions and long-term systemic issues in military procurement.

The narrative draws from historical records around India’s military emergency post-Partition and Krishna Menon’s controversial order of over 2,000 army jeeps from a British firm, paid for largely in advance with minimal delivery. The research included documented parliamentary debates, declassified correspondence, and secondary sources that detail Menon’s political affiliations and Soviet ties—such as writings by Vasili Mitrokhin, former KGB archivist.

The structure was built to maintain a compact format while introducing viewers to the larger ideological tensions that shaped India’s early defence strategies. Editing focused on pacing the story as a chronological exposé—using animated maps, period photos, and visual inserts of archival text—to make the scandal accessible without sensationalism.

The project handled scripting, editing, VO direction, and motion design in-house. It aimed to offer a concise historical case study to trace the institutional patterns of defence mismanagement in India, starting from one of its earliest and most influential figures.