<div align="justify">Two senior former Army officers have backed the award of a commendation card to Major Leetul Gogoi, who had tied a man to a jeep in Kashmir as a shield against stone-pelters, but a retired general said the move was unbecoming of the force's traditions.<br /><br />Gogoi, a Major in the 53 Rashtriya Rifles, has been honoured with the Army Chief's commendation card for his "sustained efforts in counter-insurgency operations".<br /><br />Major Gen. (retd) Ramesh Chopra came out in support of Gogoi's action.<br /><br />"With his innovative thinking, he saved lives of people and that has to be appreciated. I give him full marks for his presence of mind," Chopra said.<br /><br />However, Lt. Gen. (retd) H S Panag, former GOC-in-C, Northern Command, criticised the move, saying Gogoi's action was unbecoming of the traditions of the Indian Army.<br /><br />"IA (Indian Army) traditions, ethos, rules & regulations swept away by the 'mood of the nation'! I stand by my views even if I am the last man standing!" Panag tweeted.<br /><br />Col. Anil Kaul (retd), who had served in the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka, said Gogoi deserved more than a commendation card because of his "out-of-the-box thinking".<br /><br />"He saved lives of people without even firing a bullet despite being attacked by stone-pelters. His act should be applauded and he should be given a Shaurya Chakra," Kaul said.<br /><br />Gogoi, who hails from Assam, had yesterday said that about 1,200 stone-pelters had surrounded a small group of security personnel at a polling booth in Utligam village of Budgam district on April 9. He claimed that if he had ordered firing, there could have been at least 12 casualties.<br /><br />The mob, which included women and children, was threatening to set ablaze the polling booth, he claimed.<br /><br />Amidst the mob, Gogoi claimed, he saw a man who appeared to be the "ringleader" as he was "instigating" the stone- pelters at Utlgam on the day of bypoll to the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency.<br /><br />He said the idea of tying the man, who was later identified as Farooq Ahmad Dar, to the jeep had struck him suddenly as a means to evacuate the polling staff and the paramilitary personnel, besides avoiding any casualties.</div>
<div align="justify">Two senior former Army officers have backed the award of a commendation card to Major Leetul Gogoi, who had tied a man to a jeep in Kashmir as a shield against stone-pelters, but a retired general said the move was unbecoming of the force's traditions.<br /><br />Gogoi, a Major in the 53 Rashtriya Rifles, has been honoured with the Army Chief's commendation card for his "sustained efforts in counter-insurgency operations".<br /><br />Major Gen. (retd) Ramesh Chopra came out in support of Gogoi's action.<br /><br />"With his innovative thinking, he saved lives of people and that has to be appreciated. I give him full marks for his presence of mind," Chopra said.<br /><br />However, Lt. Gen. (retd) H S Panag, former GOC-in-C, Northern Command, criticised the move, saying Gogoi's action was unbecoming of the traditions of the Indian Army.<br /><br />"IA (Indian Army) traditions, ethos, rules & regulations swept away by the 'mood of the nation'! I stand by my views even if I am the last man standing!" Panag tweeted.<br /><br />Col. Anil Kaul (retd), who had served in the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka, said Gogoi deserved more than a commendation card because of his "out-of-the-box thinking".<br /><br />"He saved lives of people without even firing a bullet despite being attacked by stone-pelters. His act should be applauded and he should be given a Shaurya Chakra," Kaul said.<br /><br />Gogoi, who hails from Assam, had yesterday said that about 1,200 stone-pelters had surrounded a small group of security personnel at a polling booth in Utligam village of Budgam district on April 9. He claimed that if he had ordered firing, there could have been at least 12 casualties.<br /><br />The mob, which included women and children, was threatening to set ablaze the polling booth, he claimed.<br /><br />Amidst the mob, Gogoi claimed, he saw a man who appeared to be the "ringleader" as he was "instigating" the stone- pelters at Utlgam on the day of bypoll to the Srinagar Lok Sabha constituency.<br /><br />He said the idea of tying the man, who was later identified as Farooq Ahmad Dar, to the jeep had struck him suddenly as a means to evacuate the polling staff and the paramilitary personnel, besides avoiding any casualties.</div>