Maj Gogoi Likely to Face Court Martial for Srinagar Hotel Incident

Major Leetul Gogoi has been found guilty of fraternising with a Kashmiri woman & being away from his place of duty.

Major Leetul Gogoi.

(Photo: ANI)

The Indian Army's Court of Inquiry (CoI) has held Major Leetul Gogoi guilty in the Srinagar hotel incident case and has ordered to initiate disciplinary action, paving way for a possible court martial.

The CoI held Gogoi accountable for violating the official Army policy on fraternising with a local woman "source" and for being away from the place of duty while on active service in an operational area.

The action relates to an incident where the Major was seen with a local Kashmiri woman in a Srinagar hotel on 23 May. Major Gogoi, along with another Army officer, Sameer Ahmed, were questioned at a Srinagar police station after an argument erupted at Hotel Grand Mamta, where the hotel staff refused to let a woman, who was accompanying the Major, in.

On 26 May, General Bipin Rawat said, “If Major Gogoi has done something wrong, I assure you, he will be punished and the punishment will be such that it will set an example.”

In early August, The Indian Express reported that the findings of the CoI had been submitted to the XV Corps and were being studied before being processed according to military law.

Notably, Major Leetul Gogoi first made the headlines in April 2017 over the human shield incident, in which he tied a local Kashmiri to the front of a jeep to protect soldiers from stone-pelters.

(With inputs from ANI and PTI)