Probe indicts Armymen in land scam

The recommendations, it is learnt, were made by an Army Court of Inquiry (CoI) held at the Eastern Command in Kolkata.

The CoI recommended that Lt Gen Avdhesh Prakash—currently military secretary and one of the eight principal staff officers in the Army headquarters—be dismissed from service. Gen Prakash is due to retire on January 31, 2010.

The CoI has also recommended court-martial proceedings against two senior Army officers, one of whom was tipped to be the deputy chief at the Army headquarters.
However, the appointment was put on hold by Defence Minister A K Antony once the news about the scam broke out. The scam involves granting an illegal no-objection certificate to a private land developer next to the 33 Corps headquarters at Sukna.

However, there has been no official confirmation from the Army headquarters or the Ministry of Defence on the CoI recommendations. An Army officer has advised the media not to speculate on the outcome of the ongoing legal process.