The Summary Court has ordered them “to be dismissed from service and to be reduced to rank”. The fate of other five jawans hangs in balance, as their court proceedings are pending.
According to official documents, the convicted jawans are Asabe Ballal Babaso, Sandeep Kumar, Rathod Santosh, Ramendra Singh and Jagabandhu Das.
The Summary Court Martial held them guilty under Sections 39 (a) (absenting himself without leave), 39 (d) (without sufficient cause failing to appear at the time fixed at the place appointed for duty) and 63 (an act prejudicial to good order and military discipline) of the Army Act.
The Summary Court ordered them to undergo their sentence in a civil jail. Their sentence started on December 30.
Sources in the Army said the soldiers of the 56 Armoured Regiment, stationed in Patiala as part of the Elite 1 Armoured Division, had left the unit without permission in October 2012, alleging that the Commanding Officer had ordered that they be punished for protesting against being forced to carry out certain “menial tasks” by some officers. The jawans had said that they left the unit and returned to their regimental centre in Ahmednagar.
“Their (jawans) allegation could not be proved in the Summary Court,” a senior army officer monitoring the case said.
Another officer said the jawans failed to prove their allegation and could not substantiate their absence from duty without leave. “The jawans were never ordered to perform menial tasks. Instead, they were asked to carry out basic duties of an armyman such as cleaning their personal weapons and undergoing battle physical efficiency test, which is required of all combatants,” he said.
0 comments :
Post a Comment