Jammu/New Delhi: Prominent Gujjar community leaders and activists have expressed anger over the decision of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) to strike out from record the administrative punitive action against a senior Army officer for the custodial deaths of three civilians in Poonch district in December 2023.
Strongly reacting to the tribunal’s decision to remove Brigadier Padmasambhava Acharya’s name from administrative files after his two-year period of “severe displeasure” censure, Gujjar community leader Shahnawaz Choudhary described the episode as a “complete betrayal of the community”.
The dispute originated from an operation in response to an ambush near the Dera Ki Gali (DKG) area of Poonch District on December 21, 2023, during which four soldiers were killed, two of them being mutilated.
While conducting searches, the security forces arrested local civilians for questioning. Three of those arrested died due to injuries allegedly received during interrogation at the Company Operating Base in Mastan Dhara and a purported video of the torture was leaked on social media.
Consequent to the Court of Inquiry ordered by the Headquarters of XVI Corps, punitive administrative action was taken against Brig. Acharya, who then commanded 13 Sector, for lack of exercising proper command and control, improper handling of civilians and inability to stop the excesses committed.
“Gujjars have always maintained their patriotism in the depth of their hearts and have never felt any need to showcase it, but again and again, we are faced with injustice,” said Choudhary.
Choudhary and his team provided extensive help to the Army when this unfortunate incident happened to douse the anger following an assurance that the Army will take strict action against the guilty.
The fact that the senior army officer has been censured for two years but now a tribunal order has directed that this action of the officer will not be reflected in his personal record makes a mockery of our judicial system, Choudhary said.
“In other words, this judicial process is paving the way for the promotion of the officer in future and thereby undermining accountability for those innocent lives that were lost,” he said.
He asked the government to respond to the written submissions filed in the proceedings claiming that senior leadership, including the then Corps Commander of XVI Corps stationed at Nagrota, was present in the control room at DKG during the “torture” of civilians in Mastan Dhara.
“One cannot escape the issue of moral and operational responsibility by taking refuge in legal technicalities,” he said.
Social activist Zahid Parwaz stated, “Justice cannot be treated as a symbolic slap on the wrist that fades away with the arrival of the season of promotions.”
Referring to the submissions made by the officer with respect to monitoring by high-ranking officials from the nearby control room, social activist Parwaz demanded an uncompromising investigation, warning that the shielding of command responsibility would prove to be a dangerous precedent with regard to civil-military accountability in sensitive areas.
Sharif Chouhan, former Senior Superintendent of Jammu and Kashmir Police and general secretary of the Gujjar Desh Charitable Trust, stressed that “absolute accountability is the only moral strength of the army.”
“If internal submissions establish that top operational commanders knew about systemic atrocities being committed by their men just kilometres away, then the decision of the tribunal in diluting record entries will be detrimental to the discipline of the armed forces,” Chouhan added.
During the AFT hearing, the bench dismissed the plea filed by the officer to challenge the censure “severe displeasure” imposed on July 8, 2024, stating that excessive use of force against civilians cannot be allowed and emotions have to give way to military discipline and constitutional obligations.
The officer challenged the imposition of the censure and claimed that “senior officers including the Corps Commander of XVI Corps and General Officer Commanding (GOC) of Counter Insurgency Force ‘Romeo’ had been present in the control room during the operations and therefore should share the blame”.
The officer further contended that there was a clear case of the Corps Commander acting as a judge in his own cause.
Dismissing these submissions, the AFT bench stated that the direction, control and supervision of ground operations rest with the sector commander and commanding officer.
The tribunal observed that the policy under the guidelines of the Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act (AFSPA), 1990 strictly prohibits the use of physical force and third degree methods.
Nevertheless, taking into account a policy of the Ministry of Defence dated 30 October 2023, according to which the duration of the period of “Severe Displeasure” of the Corps Commander is two years only, the tribunal instructed the authorities to delete the punishment from the administrative file of the Brigadier.
The bench explained that the deletion of the record was done as an exception in this particular case only.
