By Bhupen Goswami
Guwahati : The court martial proceedings against Army Major Leetul Gogoi have been completed and he is likely to face reduction in seniority for fraternising with a local woman, army sources said on Sunday. Major Gogoi was in the centre of a controversy in 2017 when he created a human shield by tying a Kashmiri youth to the bonnet of his jeep to avoid attacks by stone pelting mobs during the discharge of duties in the Badgam district of Jammu and Kashmir. Major Gogoi’s driver Sameer Malla, who facilitated the major’s relationship with a local woman, also faced the court martial proceedings along with the officer.
“He is likely to be given a serious reprimand,” sources said. After completion of summary of evidence against Major Gogoi and his driver in February, followed by the initiation of court martial proceedings, the two men have been held guilty on two counts, “fraternising with a local woman in spite of instructions to the contrary and being away from the place of duty while in operational area”.Major Gogoi was posted with Rashtriya Rifles battalion to fight insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir. Police had detained the Major along with his driver and a local woman in 2018 when they came to a local hotel where the manager refused to give them a room to stay for the night.As per Indian Army sources, the disciplinary proceedings have been completed against him. He has been recommended to be punished with the loss of seniority by the army authorities that is to be confirmed by the Northern Command. Kashmir police had detained Major Gogoi from a hotel in Srinagar with an 18-year-old Kashmiri girl on May 23, 2019. After the altercation, the Army ordered a Court of Inquiry (CoI) to probe the incident. The girl confessed that he went to the hotel of her own will but later denied it in front of the court, official sources said. It may be mentioned The court-martial process against his driver, Sameer Malla, who was facing charges of unauthorized absence from the unit has also been completed and he is facing a “severe reprimand.”
