Shillong, Jan 22 (IANS) Lt. Gen. P.K. Rath, who was convicted in a land scam by a court martial a day earlier, was Saturday handed down a sentence including stripping off of his rank and forfeiture of 15 years of service for pension purposes.
The court martial against Rath, the first serving lieutenant general (Lt. Gen.) to be convicted, recommended taking ‘off the rank and the precedence of appointment’ with substantive effect from May 24, 2010. In effect, his promotion in 2008 may now be considered effective from 2010.
The court martial also recommended forfeiture of 15 years of his service for the purpose of pension, besides a severe reprimand.
Rath, the former 33 Corps Commander, was found guilty on three counts in a scam in which a no-objection certificate (NOC) was issued to a private realtor to transfer a 70-acre plot of land adjacent to the Sukna military station in West Bengal’s Siliguri district.
