New Delhi: Army's two top Generals, Military Secretary Lieutenant General (Lt Gen) Avadesh Prakash and Deputy Chief-designate Lt Gen PK Rath, face the prospect of disciplinary action with an internal probe into a land scam in Sukna near Darjeeling finding them culpable.
Army sources said in New Delhi on Monday that the Court of Inquiry (COI) headed by Lt Gen KT Parnaik, the General Officer Commanding of the Tezpur-based 4 Corps, indicted the two officers for their role in issuing a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) to a private establishment that falsely claimed to be establishing an affiliate of the famed Ajmer-based Mayo College.
Lt Gen Prakash is one of the top eight Generals in the headquarters acting as advisors to Army chief General Deepak Kapoor. Prakash is responsible for promotion and postings of officers and the post is said to be a much sought after one.
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.
The Army COI, which concluded in Kolkata last weekend, probed allegations that some Generals and other senior officers had issued a NOC to the private institution that bought the land adjacent to the Sukhna military station in Darjeeling a few years ago.
Now, the Army headquarters is awaiting the inquiry report to order summary of evidence against those found culpable in the land fraud, sources added.
Lt Gen Prakash's 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 by misusing the NOC.
The trust had claimed that Lt Gen Prakash would join the trust as a director soon after his retirement.
Prakash, the COI found, had also lobbied for the private institution, apart from meeting its officials at his official residence in Delhi, according to the sources.
Lt Gen Prakash had served in the area about four years ago before taking over as the MS at the Army headquarters in New Delhi.
He is one of top eight generals in Delhi. He is the advisor to Army chief General Deepak Kapoor and by designation, a Military Secretary - responsible for promotions and postings of officers.
Apart from the two senior Lt Gens, 11 Corps Commander Lt Gen Ramesh Halgali's name too figures prominently among those who had a role in the NOC episode.
After the Darjeeling land fraud controversy emerged, Defence Minister AK Antony had ordered a probe into the allegations and on a number of occasions pointed out that even top brass of the Army would not be spared if the charges were proved.
In the land fraud, the Army had initially refused an NOC but the decision was reportedly reversed by the senior officers. An NOC is mandatory for sale of land adjacent to military stations due to security reasons.
The Army inquiry would also look into documents relating to the NOC being forged and the original documents rejecting the NOC being replaced with forged papers in the Army records.
A preliminary Army probe had revealed that the institution had no connection with Mayo College, the premise under which the NOC was issued.
Army spokespeople say media reports are speculative as the court of inquiry is still not over. "Media reporting on Siliguri land scam amounts to character assassination of senior officers. Pre-mature trial and verdict by the responsible media should be avoided" — Army Spokesman, Colonel S Om Singh to CNN-IBN
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