On Challenge To Officer's Dismissal Over Brahmos Misfire, Court Seeks Centre's Stand
NDTV
The petitioner contended the decision of the Ministry of Defence to terminate him in August 2022 was "grossly mala-fide, discriminatory, illegal, and unjust" as he had acted in "complete obedience of the SOP".
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday sought the Centre's stand on a petition by a former Air Force officer against his dismissal over the accidental firing of Brahmos missile into Pakistan during a simulation exercise last year.
A bench of Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Neena Bansal Krishna issued notice on the petition by the former wing commander, who was posted as Engineering Officer at the relevant time, and granted the Centre six weeks to file its response.
The petitioner contended the decision of the Ministry of Defence to terminate him in August 2022 was "grossly mala-fide, discriminatory, illegal, and unjust" as he had acted in "complete obedience of the SOP".
Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma opposed his plea and said the termination cannot be challenged in the present proceedings. In his plea, the sacked officer has submitted he was trained for duties which were purely of "maintenance nature" and never on conduct of operations. He asserted he was "not trained against the counts of blame apportioned to him in the Court of Inquiry".
