Maj Leetul Gogoi recommended to be punished by Army for fraternising with Kashmiri girl

Major Leetul Gogoi, who hit the headlines in April 2017 for using a civilian as a shield against stone-throwers, had been held guilty by a court of inquiry of fraternising with a local and being away from his place of duty in an operational area.

"The disciplinary proceedings have been completed and he has been recommended to be punished with the loss of seniority by the authorities concerned. The punishment recommended will have to be confirmed by the Northern Command," Army sources said.

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat had last year said that the officer had not committed as grave a mistake as was being made out by the media. He had backed the officer when the jeep episode happened but also talked about giving him exemplary punishment when the hotel episode got exposed.

On May 23 last year, the Kashmir police had detained Major Gogoi when he was found in a Srinagar hotel with an 18-year-old girl. After the altercation, the Army ordered a court of inquiry (CoI) to probe the incident.

The CoI held him guilty of "fraternising" with a local in violation of Army instructions in operational areas.