New Delhi:
The Army has instituted a Court of Inquiry (COI) against Major General R K Hooda in the Adarsh housing society scam. Hooda wil face the COI under the Army Act since he is a serving officer.
(Watch: Army chief promises action in Adarsh Scam case)Hooda had been approved for the next rank, but will now be attached at the Army's Southern Command headquarters in Pune to face the COI headed by a serving Lieutenant General.
Major General Hooda was the general officer commanding (Maharashtra and Goa) during former army chief Gen Deepak Kapoor's tenure, before being posted to Delhi five months ago. The officer's name figures in the list of the more than 100 allottees of the 31-floor high-rise in Colaba.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is looking into the role of retired army and navy officers, Defence Estates officers, bureaucrats, and Maharashtra politicians.
(Read: How bureaucrats served themselves) The naked collusion between Army officers with politicians and bureaucrats loomed 31 storeys high when the Adarsh Society scam was discovered. It suggested a new low in corruption - flats meant for war widows and defence veterans had been cornered at prices unheard of for Mumbai's pricey Colaba area.
(Read: Was this General the mastermind?)The scam came to light after Western Naval Commander Admiral Sanjeev Bhasin shot off a letter to the Army headquarters and the Defence Ministry seeking action against the building for posing a security threat to military installations.
(Read: Adarsh society-a security risk)The high-rise is built on 6,450 sq metres within the Colaba naval area and was cleared on the condition of housing war veterans but now has 104 members including senior Army commanders, a former environment minister, legislators and state bureaucrats.
The Army and Navy are exploring the option of demolishing the housing society after extensive evidence that it was built on defence land. The Ministry of Defence may also look at invoking the Works of Defence Act, 1903, which empowers it to acquire a building or installation, or even demolish it.
(Read: Army, Navy favour Adarsh demolition)The Adarsh Housing Scam has already caused Ashok Chavan to quit as Maharashtra Chief Minister.
(Read: CBI likely to question Ashok Chavan soon)