Major Leetul Gogoi found guilty in Srinagar hotel case, Army orders disciplinary action
New Delhi : The Army’s Court of Inquiry (CoI) Monday issued orders to initiate disciplinary action against Major Leetul Gogoi after he was seen with a local Kashmiri woman in a Srinagar hotel earlier this year. The court held him accountable for “fraternising with locals inspite of instructions to the contrary and for being away from the place of duty while in operational area”.
After the Corps Commander’s approval of CoI’s findings, Army authorities will frame charges against the officer citing relevant provisions of the Army Act. They can then decide to either punish the officer or convene a court-martial to try the officer.
A Court of Inquiry had been ordered against Major Leetul Gogoi following an altercation at a Srinagar hotel where he had shown up with a young woman and a man. The trio had been questioned by Srinagar police in May this year after an argument erupted at the Hotel Grand Mamta where the staff refused to let the woman in.
Police said the officer was later handed over to his unit. SP North City Sajad Ahmad Shah, who was asked by IGP (Kashmir) S P Pani to conduct an inquiry, said police were told that a room in the hotel had been booked in the name of Leetul Gogoi. On May 31, J&K police in its status report to a Srinagar court had said that “no case is made out against Gogoi and neither the hotelier nor the girl had filed any complaint.”
The inquiry is usually conducted as per Army regulations into any incident of indiscipline or controversial behaviour. The CoI, headed by a Brigadier, took the testimonies of Major Gogoi, other Army officers concerned besides checking documents dealing with the case.
Army chief General Bipin Rawat had earlier said exemplary punishment would be given to Major Gogoi if he was found guilty of “any offence” and “the punishment will set an example”.
Major Gogoi, last year, had created a row after tying a civilian to a Jeep and driving through several villages of Budgam in Jammu and Kashmir
courtesy : indianexpress.com
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Karnataka govt formulating civil aviation policy: Minister Patil
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Infrastructure Development Minister M B Patil on Friday said that the state government is formulating a civil aviation policy of its own, covering various aspects of the sector.
He also said that a meeting of public representatives from Ballari, Vijayanagara and Koppal districts will be held soon under Chief Minister Siddaramaiah's chairmanship, regarding the airport in the region, as he stressed that both feasibility and viability should be considered while determining the location for airports.
The minister was replying to a question about Ballari airport, raised by Gangavathi MLA G Janardhana Reddy in the Legislative Assembly.
"We build airports, but after three years they get shut down. The situation is not only in our state, but it is across the country. We don't know the future of district airports. So I met the Union Civil Aviation Minister along with the Chief Minister with a request that the UDAN scheme be extended from three years to five years, and that for the subsequent five years the Centre and the state should jointly support operations in a 50:50 ratio," Patil said.
"The issue is there across the country and they (Centre) are also thinking on these lines...We are also bringing a policy on civil aviation from the Infrastructure Development Department (IDD). Two other states have done it --Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. That policy will have things like state's share, bulk amount sought by international airlines, among other things," he said, adding that work is on regarding this policy.
Noting that the proposed Ballari airport should benefit not only Ballari district but also the people of Koppal and Vijayanagara districts, the minister said in this regard, a meeting of public representatives from the three districts will soon be convened under the chairmanship of the chief minister to deliberate on the merits and challenges of the project.
There is little use if an airport becomes inactive after construction. "Keeping this in mind, the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) has identified two new sites in Ballari district measuring about 800 acres and 1,200 acres for the proposed airport," he said.
If the airport were to be constructed at the previously identified site in Ballari, it would require the construction of an eight-lane greenfield highway and involve several other issues, the minister said.
"Land acquisition and compensation alone would cost nearly as much as the airport project itself. Therefore, that option is not practically feasible. The matter will ultimately be finalised at the meeting to be held under the chairmanship of the CM," he added.
Stating that airports must be planned with foresight, otherwise, the same mistakes seen in Hubballi, Belagavi and Vijayapura would be repeated, Patil pointed out that the distance between Belagavi and Hubballi airports is only about 70 km.
"If an airport had been constructed at a location between the two districts to serve both regions, it might have been declared an international airport based on passenger traffic," he said.
A similar mistake has been made in Vijayapura as well. "The airport that is now ready for inauguration has been constructed on the Kalaburagi road. If it had been located towards Almatti instead, it would have benefited places such as Badami, Aihole, Pattadakal and Bagalkote, all of which have tourist attractions," he said.
Highlighting that airports located in district and divisional headquarters across the country are facing challenges, the minister said Bidar and Kalaburagi airports are also experiencing difficulties.
"At present, Bidar airport is functioning with the support of the Kalyana Karnataka Region Development Board (KKRDB). There has also been a demand to resume operations at Kalaburagi airport, and steps will be taken in that direction," he added.
