Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar wrote to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet saying promote the Major Generals only after the CBI clears them.
An inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation into corruption charges against two senior army officers has triggered a rethink on the Defence Ministry's promotion policy for officers of the three forces - the Indian Navy, Air Force and Army.
In a rare move, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar put a clear rider when he recommended the promotion of the two officers - both Major Generals - to the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC). He wrote to the committee saying the two should be promoted only if the investigations clear them. The ACC consists of the Prime Minister and the Home Minister. The two officers were being considered for promotion to the rank of Lieutenant General.
Questions are now being asked about how the two officers nearly made it to the top of the pyramid. At every rank, officers are weeded out regularly to make sure not everyone gets promoted, sources say. The minister making the promotion conditional is significant because the allegations of corruption pertain to posts the two held in the past.
Top sources told NDTV that instead of age and time left in service being the main criteria for promotion to senior ranks like Lieutenant General, the ministry now wants promotions to be based on merit.
As of now, a Major General must have at least two years of service left to become an Army Commander. "It all boils down to who is born when. Talent, merit and capability get under-played since the decision of picking up the next rank depends on residual service and available vacancies," a top official of the Ministry of Defence said.
There are also allegations that officers play favourites in promotions. "The difference between officers in the quantitative system - where service records and achievements are reduced to numbers - is very small. In fact, almost everyone gets marked on the higher side, indicating inflation," says Major General Ravi Arora (retd).
"The system is fair, but it can be manipulated as well because of regimental loyalties and individual familiarity," he adds.