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Army chief imposes ‘discipline and vigilance’ ban on colleague
General VK Singh delivers a parting shot, issues show-cause notice to Lt Gen Suhag tipped to be Eastern Command chief
Prakhar Jain
New Delhi
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Photo: Shailendra Pandey |
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After the Army Chief General VK Singh personally issued a show-cause notice to Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag last week, the Army headquarters has now imposed a “discipline and vigilance” ban on him. The ban, used in cases of indiscipline and corruption, prohibits any posting and promotion and will put on hold Lt Suhag’s elevation as an Army Commander unless cleared by the Army headquarters or the ministry of defence.
The show-cause notice had asked Lt Suhag to explain his alleged “unprofessional and lackadaisical manner” in dealing with a botched operation at Johrat, Assam, in December last year. Lt Suhag was slated to take over as the Eastern Command chief from 1 June and would have been a contender for the Army chief’s post in two years’ time.
Lt Suhag has, however, gone on leave and it is unlikely that he’ll accept the notice and respond to it by 26 May, as demanded in the notice by Gen Singh. A probe against him was earlier recommended in March this year too by the Army chief in a scandal related to the procurement of parachute for the Special Frontier Force. The recommendation was turned down by the government.
Former senior army officers though are not happy with the current move of the Army chief. Lt Gen (Retd) Raj Kadyan feels, “A show-cause notice is not like a question paper you can start answering as soon as you break the seal. The man needs time to reply. The very fact that less time was given also puts into question the intention of the action.”
A general feeling among most retired officers is that the image of the Army has taken a beating in this whole skirmish. Major Gen (Retd) GD Bakshi thinks that there is an urgent need to reduce the conflict in the system at the earliest as many good generals have been lost after being short-listed for higher posts due to their becoming subject of undignified intrigues and plots. “Half the source of the problem, as I see it, is the increasing politicisation of the post of the Chief of Army Staff by announcing a chain of succession. That leads to needless heartburn and controversies. Army officers are supposed to be promoted on the basis of merit and demonstrated performance,” he says.
Kadyan has very strong words for the outgoing chief. “The image of the Army is getting a beating almost every day. Any action taken by the man at the helm of affairs must appear rational and reasonable. They must not only be fair and just, but also appear to be fair and just. Some of these actions (of the chief), I think, don’t meet those criteria,” he said.
Prakhar Jain is a Correspondent with Tehelka.com.
prakhar@tehelka.com
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