5 Army officers may face disciplinary action

By Atul Aneja

NEW DELHI, MAY 17. The Army is debating the follow-up action against key officers accused in the Tehelka pay-off scandal after an internal inquiry submitted its report on Monday.

After the submission of the report to the Western Army Command chief, Lt. General S.S. Sangra, the Army is deliberating suitable follow-up action. The court of inquiry, headed by Lt. General S.K. Jain, mainly probed allegations of corruption levelled by the web portal tehelka.com against five serving officers - Major General P.S.K. Choudhary, Lt. General M.S. Ahluwalia, Brigadier Iqbal Singh, Colonel Anil Sehgal and Lt. Colonel Sharma.

The Army can now exercise either of two options. It can, for instance, consider initiating criminal proceedings against the accused on charges of corruption. But it can also consider stringent disciplinary action including dismissal from service of the officers on grounds that each of the accused behaved in a manner ``unbecoming of an officer''. This is possible under the existing service and conduct rules.

It may also find it difficult to take legal action and invoke criminal proceedings by ordering a General Court Marshal (GCM) against the accused. Highly-placed sources in the Government say the inquiry has found it difficult to establish corruption charges against the accused, except in the case of Maj. Gen. P.S.K. Choudhary, who admitted receiving a bribe by the undercover team before a private television channel. The remaining accused are said to have denied indulging in any corrupt deal. In fact, one of the officers, according to the sources, told the inquiry commission that the spy camera of the Tehelka team only made selective recordings. While it showed him receiving the money, it did not record that he had immediately returned it.

On the contrary, the Army may find it easier to take disciplinary action against the accused on administrative grounds. It had been established that the accused violated service norms by clandestinely meeting the Tehelka team in a hotel, sources said. This act, which under existing rules is ``unbecoming of an officer'', can alone attract dismissal from service. The Army, in fact, may find it prudent to follow this course.

The sources said the Army might indeed hesitate to initiate a court martial proceedings on yet another count. Since the accused officers are also likely to be examined by the Justice K. Venkataswami commission appointed by the Central Government, it is hesitating to follow a course of action which maybe overridden by the latter subsequently.

As of now, the legal branch of the Army is likely to record the ``summary of evidence'' on the basis of the report. A decision on appropriate disciplinary or legal action is expected to be taken later.

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