Lt Gen Ramesh Halgali
In a sensational development in the Sukna land scam case, private realtor Dileep Agarwal has written a letter to the Army, blaming Lt Gen Ramesh Halgali for issuing No Objection Certificates for construction on a piece of land adjacent to the military station.
However, the General Court Martial in the case has refused to take cognisance of the letter which was received by it on Monday evening, as the Army has already taken action against him. Halgali is at present holding the charge of the Director General of Military Training at the Army headquarters in New Delhi.
The letter claims that Lt Gen P K Rath, who is facing court martial in the Sukna case, was not responsible for the land transaction and puts onus on Halgali, the then deputy of Rath and a Major General, for it.
Attached with the letter is an air-ticket to Bangalore on which Agarwal purportedly attended the wedding of Halgali”s daughter.
Rath, the former 33 Corps Commander is facing court martial for granting no-objection certificates to private realtors at a 70-acre plot adjacent to the Sukna Military Station for building educational institutions.
He is facing several charges under the Army Act, including ”intent to defraud” and violation of the ”good order military discipline”.
Defence counsel S S Pandey, in his closing address yesterday before the letter was received, had said “Prosecution Witness 7 (Halgali) closely monitored and supervised the preparation of the MoU entered into with the private parties. He (Halgali) should be sitting where the accused (Rath) is sitting today… He was most intimately involved with the private parties.”
Pandey said Halgali was the person who had fixed the meeting between the Army officers and the private parties.
He also questioned why Agarwal was not allowed to be examined as the entire “spectrum revolved around him.”
Alleging that the prosecution has not presented their case fairly and impartially, the defence said some crucial documents were not produced before the court. “The prosecution has not been able to prove the fact that the alleged acts or omission can be characterised as criminal offences to justify any trial.”
-via MSN India
Sensing imminent danger, Ramesh Halgali tried to save his own skin by acting up a drama of approver and helping the prosecution. He had is piece of cake and ate it too ! His daughter’s lavish wedding expenses in Bangalore and the couple air passage to London were paid by the Sukna land beneficiaries. Shame…Shame…Shame…..
SUKHNA LAND SCAM- COURT MARTIAL OF LT GEN
1. A serving Lt Gen for the first time in history was tried by a General Court Martial for his unbecoming conduct in the Sukha Land Scam.
2. Lt Gen PK Rath, Ex GOC 33 Corps was indicted along with Lt Gen Avdesh Prakash, Ex Military Secretary by a Court of Inquiry earlier.
3. Lt Gen PK Rath has since been tried by the General Court Martial at Shillong, and was convicted on three charges. The guilty and prime accused has been correctly convicted.
4. The Indian Army has a structured mechanism to deal with impropriety, corruption and wrong doing in the organization. This General Court Martial is a true epitome of military justice executed in a short periodof one year time.
5. In the Sukhna Land Case, Lt Gen Rath who was Corps Commander had wrongly issued NOC and MOU to the real estate builder without informing his superior Headquarter. As soon as the fraud was detected, the Chief of Staff, Maj Gen Ramesh Halgali reported the matter. He was the whistle blower of this case. This became the episodic turning point of the case. In view of timely and correct reporting by him, a General Court Martial was instituted so that the matter is nibbed in the bud itself.
6. Inspite of grave provocations, Maj Gen Ramesh Halgali demonstrated high character, military values and unflinching loyalty. Officers who stand up against wrong doing are treated fairly with honour and respected. Whistle blowers became a rallying point for thousand of officers who work with morality, honesty and character.
7. The Indian Army continues to maintain the highest standards of discipline and morale. An odd aberration like this, is handled with due alacrity under laid down disciplinary channels. There is a strong drive in the Army to root out corruption through transparency, adherence to military ethics and protection of whistle blowers.