The Sukhna land scam, in which four generals have been indicted, would be a key test of defence minister AK Antony’s public posturing for fairness.
The Sukhna land scam, in which four generals including the military secretary have been indicted, would be a key test of defence minister AK Antony’s public posturing for fairness, those in the military circles believe.
A court of inquiry indicted military secretary lieutenant-general (Lt Gen) Avadesh Prakash and deputy army chief-designate Lt Gen PK Rath for their role in issuing no-objection certificate to a private company which claimed to be setting up a franchise of Mayo College of Ajmer on land adjacent to Sukhna military station in Darjeeling. Lt Gen Prakash is one of the top eight principal staff officers at the army headquarters, advising army chief Deepak Kapoor. Lt. Gen Rath was commander of the 33 corps in Darjeeling under which the Sukhna military station falls.
In the bureaucratic handling of the report, the army could hold on to it for weeks, without passing it on to the defence minister who has said the guilty would not be spared. It has to be seen whether Antony lets the army delay the process till Prakash’s retirement, or sends a strong message.
The eastern army commander, Lt Gen VK Singh, has recommended the dismissal of Prakash, and various disciplinary and administrative actions against the other generals.
But army sources indicate the recommendations may not go through with the army headquarters, and it is not necessary that the army chief accept them in full. In fact, some sources hint the army top brass is inclined to let Prakash “retire honourably” in a few weeks. Prakash is known to be close to the army chief.
Singh has gone by the legal opinion on the findings of the inquiry into the security clearance for starting the Rs300 crore education complex. But the army chief may not fully accept Singh’s suggestions. One of the reasons could be the underlying tension between the two.
In an effort to be seen as not protecting the guilty, the army issued a statement saying, “the army... is sensitive to any irregularities and have sought timely action against those indulging in any wrongs”.
But, many mid-rung officers say that while the top brass is quick to act against juniors, seniors get away with their misdemeanours. “It [how the army acts on the report] would be a great test of our commitment to discipline,” said a colonel.
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