New Delhi: In the last 15 years, the India Navy has been in the news for all the wrong reasons. It has seen 21 chiefs in the last 60 years. As a Defence wing, it has 58,350 personnel, and is smaller than the Air Force.
Prime Minister Vajpayee ordered the sacking of Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat in December 1998 for alleged defiance of the government on many occasions.
Defence minister George Fernandes and Adm. Bhagwat had public spat, causing a huge embarrassment for the government. The Admiral had refused to accept a Cabinet order appointing Vice-Admiral Harinder Singh as his deputy. That was unprecedented in the history of three services, and so was the sacking.
Adm. Sushil Kumar who succeeded him had to face corruption charges. CBI had named him in an FIR related to the alleged corruption in the purchase of Barak 1 Missiles system. It was a part of ‘Tehelka’ expose. But, in 2013 CBI closed investigation due to lack of evidence.
Adm. Arun Prakash also faced allegations in connection with the naval war room leak and the Scorpene submarine deal. Adm. Prakash strongly protested linking of his name to the alleged scam. He was an outstanding Navy chief and the allegations against him were highly motivated.
Adm. D K Joshi was a very low profile Chief of Naval Staff in the recent times. To his bad luck, several mishaps happened during his tenure.
INS Sindhrakshak sank near the naval dockyard in Mumbai last year killing several seamen. There have been three major accidents involving submarines in the last seven months. He had to face the heat of the media and the government. Finally, INS Sindhuratna forced him out of Navy’s chief’s office.
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