In Our Defence

It has been 19 years in the making. From the original MMRCA tender in 2007 to the emergency purchase in 2016, and now, finally MRFA, the "Mother of All Defence Deals" seems ready for ink.

Reports suggest the Indian Air Force is in the final stages of acquiring 114 Rafale jets in a deal estimated at a staggering Rs 3.25 Lakh Crore (~$40 Billion).

In this episode of In Our Defence, Dev Goswami sits down with national security expert Sandeep Unnithan to decode the deal. The two trace the origins of the Indian Air Force's hunt for a fighter jet to the post-Kargil years and look at the various stumbling blocks along the way that have kept the deal from taking off.

The two also discuss just how dire the situation is for the Indian Air Force and why this reported deal to buy 114 Rafale jets is a "now or never" moment.

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Produced by Taniya Dutta

Sound mixed by Aman Pal

Is the era of the massive Indian Army over? In this episode of In Our Defence, Dev Goswami and Sandeep Unnithan decode the Indian Army's roadmap for force restructuring, a project that has been in the works for several years.

The two answer the big questions:

-Why is the Army desperate to "cut the flab"?

-What exactly are Integrated Battle Groups (IBGs), and how do they change the way India fights wars?

The episode also features a deep dive into the Army’s massive push for drones and whether tech is finally replacing boots on the ground.

Finally, Dev and Sandeep imagine what the future Indian Army infantry soldier will look like and why the science fiction movies of the past years may not be so far off the mark on this aspect.

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Produced by Taniya Dutta

Sound mixed by Aman Pal

On January 3, 2026, the United States military changed the rules of engagement. In a lightning-fast raid involving 150 aircraft and Delta Force operators, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro was captured from his palace in Caracas. The US calls it Operation Absolute Resolve. The world calls it the boldest special operation in history.

But beyond the headlines, how does a raid like this actually work? It’s not just bearded men kicking down doors -- it’s cyber warfare, diplomatic wrangling, and domain superiority.

In this episode of In Our Defence, host Dev Goswami and national security expert Sandeep Unnithan break down the mechanics of the Maduro snatch. They also talk about a little-known Indian operation called Operation Sundown -- an aborted 1983 plan to snatch Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale from the Golden Temple using similar tactics.

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Produced by Taniya Dutta

Sound mixed by Aman Pal

The killing of student leader Sharif Osman Hadi has set Bangladesh on fire again. But this time, the anger isn't just anti-government, it's dangerously anti-India.

In this episode of In Our Defence, host Dev Goswami and defence expert Sandeep Unnithan decode the chaos next door. From the smashing of Sheikh Mujib's statues to the chilling return of the Pakistan Army in Bangladeshi politics, the two answer the hard question: Is India facing a new "Third Front"?

The two discuss:

-The legacy of the founder (Sheikh Mujibur Rahman) and the general (Ziaur Rahman)

-How the erasure of 1971 is opening the door for a "Pakistan-style" Islamic nationalism

-The rumor of a Pakistan-Bangladesh mutual defence pact and why that should worry India

-What 2026 may bring to Bangladesh and its politics.

Produced by Taniya Dutta

Sound mixed by Rohan Bharti

The new spy thriller Dhurandhar has sparked a massive controversy. The Adtiya Dhar film explores the concept of 'sleeper spies' -- spies who are deeply embedded in a target country's society. On this episode of In Our Defence, host Dev Goswami and national security expert Sandeep Unnithan look at what the film gets right and wrong about this aspect of espionage. 

The two talk about the intersection of ISI and Pakistani underworld that the film portrays and discuss how that is a hat-tip to the unholy alliance between the Pakistani deep state and Dawood Ibrahim that was forged in the early 1960s. 

The two also look back at the stories of some of the world's most legendary sleeper agents such as Mossad's Eli Cohen and Soviet Russia's famous 'Cambridge Five'. Also on this episode is a look at how the Research and Analysis Wing's (RAW) operations evolved in Pakistan under several Prime Ministers and what intelligence agencies are actually asked with.

Produced by Areeb Raza

Sound mixed by Suraj Singh