Just a few days away from Republic Day, the government is unusually dithering over the list of final recipients of India’s highest gallantry award during peace time.
Just a few days away from Republic Day, the government is unusually dithering over the list of final recipients of India’s highest gallantry award during peace time, the Ashok Chakra. According to dependable sources, the government is looking at revising the list of recipients from nine to 12.
A list of nine has been finalised by the Ministry of Defence and sent to the Prime Minister’s Office, which in turn will forward it to the Rashtrapati Bhawan for notification.
The unprecedented situation of reviewing a list that has already been drawn up is a fallout of the Mumbai terror attacks. Sources said the top government machinery is grappling with the controversies that could crop up if they go ahead with the present list of nine heroes for Ashok Chakra which includes both former ATS chief Hemant Karkare and assistant sub-inspector Tukaram Omble. However, the names of Ashok Kamte and Vijay Salaskar, the other two officers who were gunned down along with Karkare, are missing. There is also concern about inspector Shashank Shinde, who took on the terrorists at CST with his service revolver, not figuring on the list.
The government had decided to award Ashok Chakra, the peacetime equivalent of Param Vir Chakra, to nine security personnel. Besides Karkare and Omble, the list also includes the two NSG commandos, Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan and Havildar Gajendra Singh, who were killed fighting terrorists in Mumbai.
Besides the Mumbai heroes, Orissa Special Operations Group assistant commandant Pramod Satpathy and Meghalaya police DSP Raymond P Diengdoh are on the list of Ashok Chakra winners.
Sources said there is concern at the highest quarters in the government about the potential pitfall in omitting the names of Kamte, Salaskar and Shinde from the Ashok Chakra winners category. The three officers are currently slated for the second highest gallantry award, Kirti Chakra.
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