Dimissed Naval officer seeks justice in submarine deal

New Delhi, Apr 3 (UNI) The Delhi High Court today issued notices to the Government, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Arun Prakash and others on a petition filed by a dismissed Commander seeking direction for proper inquiry into the multi-crore rupee Scorpene submarine deal with France and his reinstatement.

A division bench, headed by Mr Justice M K Sharma asked the Government, Mr Prakash, Chief of the Army, Chief of the Air Force, CBI Director, IB Director, Principal Naval Intelligence and Principal Director Naval Personnel Services to file their replies by May 15 to the petition filed by dismissed Cdr Vinod Kumar Jha.

The petition filed by Counsel Sukhjinder Singh alleged that Jha and two other naval officers were dismissed on October 26, 2005 after subjecting them to third degree torture on fabricated, fake and malacious charges.

''The petitioner does not, officially, even now know the charges or allegations against him.'' ''Further, at no stage whatsoever, the petitioner passed on unauthorisedly any classified information to any one nor have respondents established such allegation against him,'' said the petition.

If the information with the Navy was correct, then the petitioner and others should have been court-martialled and this was not done as it was impractical and inexpedient, said Jha.

The beneficiary of the information allegedly leaked was none other than the nephew of the Chief of Naval Staff -- Ravi Shankaran and therefore, Admiral Prakash was judge in his own cause, alleged the petition.

The Indian Navy had dismissed three officers for allegedly providing the information to unauthorised persons -- Shankaran and Abhishek Verma -- in connection with Navy war room leak.

The petition also sought the role of the private persons in the deal -- Shankaran, a close associate of Verma and Kulbhushan Parashar, another associate of Verma.

UNI PAT VJ BS1827