New Delhi: In a fresh development in the Darjeeling land scam, four General-rank officers may face disciplinary action following a recommendation made by one of the top officials who had ordered a probe.
Military Secretary Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash, Deputy Chief of Army Chief Lt Gen P K Rath, Lt Gen Ramesh Halgali and Major General P Sen have come under the scanner in the wake of allegations that a civilian land adjacent to Sukhna military station in Darjeeling was sold to a private trust on the basis of a No-Objection Certificate issued by them.
Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen V K Singh, the convening authority of the probe, is believed to have sent his recommendation to the Army Chief Gen Deepak Kapoor on action against the four Generals.
While the Army spokesman declined to comment, senior officials said they were not in a position to say anything "officially" on the issue.
Sources said the Army chief would have to take a call on the course to be adopted by him on the action including whether to order a court martial on the allegations.
A Court of Inquiry (COI), headed by Lt Gen K T Parnaik, the General Officer Commanding of the Tezpur-based 4 Corps, had held the four officers culpable for their role in issuing a NOC to a private establishment that falsely claimed to be stablishing an affiliate of the famed Ajmer-based Mayo College.
After the Darjeeling land controversy came to the fore, Defence Minister A K Antony had ordered a probe into the allegations and on a number of occasions pointed out that even the top brass of the Army would not be spared if the charges were proved.
Lt Gen Prakash is one of the top eight senior officers in the headquarters acting as advisors to Gen Deepak Kapoor. Prakash is responsible for promotion and postings of officers and the post is said to be a much sought after one.
His name cropped up in the land fraud probe after it was found mentioned in the brochure of Dilip Aggarwal Geetanjali Education Trust which had bought the land allegedly by misusing the NOC.
The Trust had claimed Lt Gen Prakash would join the Trust as a director soon after his retirement.
Lt Gen Rath was all set to go the Army headquarters as one of the principal staff officers to the chief but his posting has been kept in abeyance pending the probe.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, December 23, 2009, 18:01