New Delhi, November 4
The Judge Advocate-General, who heads the Legal Department of the armed forces, now faces a show-cause notice to explain as to why action should not be taken against him for “his acts of omission and commission”.

A show-cause notice has been served on JAG Maj-Gen Nilendra Kumar by the Army Headquarters, following a report of a court of inquiry (CoI) of the Army. The CoI has said there have been acts of omission and commission and this individual may be held accountable for the same.

Sources in the Army HQ here said the show-cause notice has been served to the Major-General asking him to explain or justify the acts and why further action should not be initiated against him. A total of 15 charges have been levelled against him, which include some serious irregularities.

This includes obtaining a licence from the Bar Council of India by allegedly mis-representing facts to his senior officers. Being a serving officer, he could not have obtained such a licence. The CoI has found that he authored and published a couple of books on military law and the same were sold in the market while his official residence was the address given by his kin to operate a business.

Others charges include sale of his books and property transactions also. Another allegation was of maintaining a website.

The General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Command, Lieut-Gen T.K. Sapru had recommended initiation of disciplinary action against the JAG or convening a full-fledged court of inquiry.

The Army had initiated a one-man inquiry, conducted by Lieut-Gen Venugopal, commandant of the EME College. This was for the first time that a formal inquiry has been initiated against the head of the Army’s Legal Department. The CoI was ordered on the directions of the Chief of the Army Staff.

The JAG is the Army’s senior-most legal officer and renders legal advice to the Army chief on various matters pertaining to the functioning of the force. All disciplinary matters, including trial by courts martial, also fall under the jurisdiction of the JAG.