A former Commandant of the Indian Military Academy (IMA), lieutenant General Gambhir Singh Negi (Rtd), has termed the relegation incident in the IMA as unfortunate. He, however, justified the action of the IMA commandant and said that the tough action would be a lesson in discipline for the cadets.
lt Gen Negi added that the incident of indiscipline should have been nipped in the bud and should not have been allowed to reach such a level. “I am not aware of what exactly happened, but if the charges against seniors are true it amounts to more than mischief and the IMA Commandant is totally justified in taking the punitive action of relegation,” he said. The former IMA Commandant said that healthy ragging does take place in the Academy and is actually encouraged by the authorities so that the juniors develop desirable personality.
The president of the Uttarakhand Ex- services league, Brigadier RS Rawat (Rtd) also supported the punitive action against the offending GCs. He also accepted that ragging happens in the academy but is normally limited to introduction and some mild physical activity ordered by the seniors in the initial days but activities like physical harassment, stripping of clothes and taking photographs should be unacceptable. Brig Rawat said that some sadist elements vitiate the environment and they should be handled with an iron hand. “The aim of the academy is to release a final product whose conduct is spotless. The officers with such a sadist approach ruin the image of the Army when they are posted in hotspots like the north-east and Kashmir,'” he said.