Two Corps headless as Army chief Malik battles the Ministry

Two Corps headless as Army chief Malik battles the Ministry
GAURAV C SAWANT

NEW DELHI, MAY 31: The Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen S K Jetley retiredon Wednesday. At present, he has no successor. There is no successor to LtGen A B Maseeh either at the Leh-based 14 corps or the Siliguri based 33Corps.

The Army is caught in a piquant situation with at least two Corps completelyheadless. Last week Army headquarters had to ask the commander of itsSrinagar-based 15 Corps to stay on longer since they have yet to find hissuccessor.

Chief of the Army Staff General Ved Prakash Malik who is the chairman of thepromotion board is said to be on a collision course with the Government onthis promotion issue. ``The board sent a list of Major Generals approved forpromotion. But the Government is interfering and wants additions whichGeneral Malik refuses to make. Thus, this imbroglio,'' sources in the ArmyHeadquarters told The Indian Express.

There are at least eight Major Generals approved for promotion to the rankof Lieutenant Generals but the list is still not declassified and is lyingwith the Government, sources said. ``There is a tussle with pressure beingapplied on the Army to approve candidates for promotion who have beenrejected by the promotion board. Since the Army is sticking to its guns, thelist has not been released by the Government,'' he added.

This is not the first time that General Malik has clashed with the Ministryof Defence (MoD) and the Government over promotions. Under the previousGovernment too he had refused to sign the promotion order of a Major Generalwho had been promoted by the then Defence Minister for a long time. ``Butthat time the Chief relented. This time he is not going to do so. This is anunhealthy trend of civil establishment interfering with promotions in theArmy and undermining the authority of the Chief,''sources said.

``In normal circumstances the names of successors are announced well inadvance. In fact, before leaving the outgoing officer not only hands overcharge but also guides his successor to settle in,'' sources said.

Immediately after last year's Kargil conflict, the Army decided to raise anew Corps at Leh for better management of almost 1,400 kilometers area whichwas earlier under a division. The Srinagar Corps with its engagement incounter-insurgency operations could not devote ample time and attention tothe areas east of Zojila. ``Therefore the 14 Corps was raised. Lt Gen A BMaseeh who was commanding the Siliguri Corps was sent to Leh. Thus theSiliguri Corps fell vacant,'' said an official.

Maseeh, though considered a brilliant officer, was later found to haveindulged in actions ``unbecoming of an officer'' and put in his papers.``Thus the 14 Corps is also headless. After having completed his tenure asthe commander of Srinagar Corps, Lt Gen Krishan Pal too was to come to theArmy headquarters and take over as the Director General of MilitaryIntelligence (DGMI). But then again since the list has not been declassifiedhe has no successor either. And on Wednesday Lt Gen Jetley retired and hetoo has no successor so far,'' he added.

The Army squarely blames ``vested interests'' in the MoD and the BharatiyaJanata Party-led Government for this crisis though sources admit there aresome officers who are suspected to have approached the ``civilianestablishment for favours.''