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News reports cite IAF Chief ACM RKS Bhadauria admitted own Mi-17 was brought down by friendly fire. Sound bytes "Big mistake" & "punitive action will be taken" against "two officers" also reported.
My views follow.
News reports cite IAF Chief ACM RKS Bhadauria admitted own Mi-17 was brought down by friendly fire. Sound bytes "Big mistake" & "punitive action will be taken" against "two officers" also reported.
My views follow.
Firstly, CoIs are merely fact-finding msns. They're not meant to pin blame or hand out punishments. CoI has to be approved by higher formations. Then, a legal process to collect summary of evidence (SoE) is ordered by admin authorities if blame if found attributable to someone.
The SoE is an exercise independent of CoI. A prosecutor is appointed who collects evidence afresh without bias or recourse to BoI. Then a charge sheet is prepared. The accused is/are formally charge-sheeted, forming the precursor to a General Court Martial
The accused is given every opportunity to defend him/herself. A defence counsel is chosen/appointed. Accused is arraigned, charges read out & then asked to plea guilty/not guilty. If accused pleads guilty, GCM moves to sentence. Accused becomes convict.
GCM is a panel with a Presiding Officer and experts from associated fields. A Trial Judge Advocate guides the GCM through the legal process. Biases, though not uncommon, are terribly damaging to the process.
Only based on thorough legal validation of evidence, testimony, examination, cross-examination & analyses of all aspects does the GCM pronounce a Guilty/Not Guilty finding, followed by sentencing. If guilty, accused becomes convict.
Thus, to use phrases like "big mistake", "we will take punitive action against those guilty", heads will roll, etc, before a GCM has been convened or concluded, IMO, sets up an unfair bias. A gross miscarriage of justice may well be the outcome.
Also, a larger question remains. If indeed, it is proven beyond doubt that the Mi-17 was brought down by friendly fire because of a faulty process, what will be the status of those air warriors who perished? Will they be declared war casualties and given their due?
So, while the honesty of admission is laudable, let's tune down on the drama till court martial proceedings are completed. Without bias. News agencies also need to respect the rights of those on either side of guilty/not guilty divide
Legal eagles may shoot me down if I am wrong in my reading. Tuning out 🙏🏽
