NEW DELHI, Jan 29 – Military Secretary Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash will face court martial proceedings in the Sukna land scam following intervention of Defence Minister A K Antony who overturned Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor’s decision on administrative action against the top officer, reports PTI. The court martial of Prakash was today ordered by Kapoor, making him the senior-most three-star general in the Army to ever face such action.
The Army Chief’s decision comes two days ahead of Prakash’s retirement from military service on January 31.
“The Army Chief has ordered disciplinary action against Lt Gen Prakash, who will face a court martial in Sukna land scam. The Chief has stuck to the advice from Antony in the case,” Defence Ministry sources said here.
Prakash, who is considered close to Kapoor on account of being one of his eight aides, was found culpable in the Sukna land scam along with the then 33 Corps Commander Lt Gen P K Rath, his Chief of Staff Lt Gen Ramesh Halgali and the then Brigadier Administration Maj Gen P C Sen.
After the Court of Inquiry indicted all the General-officers in the case, Eastern Army Commander Lt Gen V K Singh, who is the Army Chief-designate, had recommended “termination of service” of Prakash and administrative action against the other officers.
However, Kapoor chose to order court martial of Rath and issued show-cause notice to others for administrative action, prompting Antony to ask why the officers, found culpable by the probe for the same offense underArmy Act, were meted out different punishments and “advised” disciplinary action against Prakash too.
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Army chief orders court martial of Lt Gen Prakash
