Army chief promises action against Major Gogoi, if found guilty

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Friday said that exemplary punishment would be given to Major Nitin Leetul Gogoi, if found guilty. Gogoi had hogged headlines last year after he strapped a civilian to the bonnet of a jeep and paraded him through a dozen hamlets during the Srinagar parliamentary by-polls was detained by police with a minor girl from a hotel on May 23 in Srinagar.

Although he was later handed over to his unit stationed at Beerwah in Budgam district, an enquiry has been ordered into incident by police.

What Happened on May 23:

Major Gogoi had made an online booking for a deluxe double occupancy room through an online booking site—booking.com—at Hotel Grand Mumta, Srinagar for one night on May 23. In his booking Gogoi has mentioned “business” as the purpose of his travel from Bordoloi Nagar, Assam to Srinagar.

Gagoi showed up at the reception, donning a blue a cap and a scarf wrapped around his neck, for check in around 10 am along with a minor girl on May 23 in a black Alto car. When hotel management asked them for an identity proof he (Gogoi) showed his driving licenses. The fuss started when the girl accompanying Gogoi displayed an Aadhaar card establishing her identity as local.

“We got suspicious as soon as we checked the identity proof of a girl who turned out to be a local. We politely asked the Gogoi how the girl is related to him and he said she is his friend. Then we politely apprised him that it is not in our policy to provide accommodation to couples who are not in a legitimate relation and cancelled the booking” said the hotel manager .

Soon Gogoi informed his driver, who was waiting in the parking lot with his car, about the denial of accommodation. His driver who was later identified as Sammer Ahmad Malla came and asked the hotel staff how it could deny a room to the guest who had already made a booking.

“ We tried to explain him that it was against our policy and business ethics but he (driver) hurled a volley of invectives on us” the manager said.

“Sensing the trouble we called the police and they picked up the trio,” he added.

Police statement:

In the evening , a poice spokesperson issued a statement saying, “On Monday, police station Khanyar received a call from Hotel Grand Mamta that an altercation has taken place at the hotel. A police party was sent to the hotel and it surfaced that a woman and a person named Sameer Ahmad Malla of Budgam had come to see some one” The statement further said that “It was learnt that the woman had come to meet an Army officer. The officer was later handed over to his unit after recording the statement”.

The police statement, however, did not identity the Officer. A senior police official who identified the officer as Major Gagoi said an inquiry had been ordered into the incident.

Demands for Gogoi’s arrest:

A day after the incident, the human-shield victim Farooq Ahmad Dar along with human rights defender Mohammad Ahsan Untoo staged a sit-in protest in press enclave Srinagar demanding action against Gogoi.

Dar, an embroidery artisan, was made a human shield by Gogoi on April 9, 2017, in central Kashmir’s Budgam district when he was returning from casting his ballot during Srinagar parliamentary by-polls.