Col Purohit had moved the AFT stating that because of the trial, which went on for 17 years, he could not avail his right to be considered for promotion which affected his career progression and promotions. (Source: File)
Less than a month after his retirement was put on hold by the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT), Colonel Shrikant Purohit, who was acquitted in the 2008 Malegaon blast case last year, has been approved for promotion to Brigadier, defence sources told The Indian Express. He will now serve for at least two more years till the age of 56.
The retirement age for Brigadiers in the Army is 56, while for Colonels, it is 54. Col Purohit will also be eligible for further promotions beyond Brigadier, on par with his batch. He had earlier missed his promotion as a full Colonel, and as a time-scale Colonel, he was scheduled to retire at the age of 54 on March 31, 2026.
Acquitted in July last year in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, Col Purohit had moved the AFT stating that because of the trial, which went on for 17 years, he could not avail his right to be considered for promotion which affected his career progression and promotions.
While he was released on bail in 2017, he was under a Discipline and Vigilance (DV) ban. His suspension was, however, revoked in July 2020.
Sources said because of the ban, the decision to promote him to the rank of Colonel was withheld in 2021.
Closer to his retirement date, he was told he was not found fit to be promoted to the rank of Colonel.
According to his lawyer, Major S S Pandey (retd), Col Purohit in his plea challenged the procedure followed by the Army in his case, stating that if he was indeed unfit for promotion to Colonel, his result would not have been kept in a sealed cover by the Army.
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Major Pandey told The Indian Express that this delay denied him two additional chances for consideration for promotion, and also his right to legally question this decision.
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