Purohit's arrest has dented Army's image: Dy chief

Deputy army chief Lt Gen SPS Dhillon on Thursday said the arrest of a serving officer in connection with the Malegaon blasts has dented the image of the organisation, reports Our Political Bureau from New Delhi.

However, he stressed that it was a ���freak��� incident. ���Indian Army���s prestige has been hurt after our officer���s name came up in Malegaon blast case,��� Lt Gen Dhillon said on the sidelines of Sainik Sammelan on 3/3 Gurkha Rifles representation in UN peacekeeping mission in Congo.

The Deputy Army Chief said Army will take action after it receives a report from the Ma-harashtra Anti-Terror Squad (ATS). He said the involvement of a serving Lieutenant Colonel was a ���freak��� incident and Army had its own mechanism for keeping a check on these kind of activities by its officers.

���This is a freak incident. We have our own mechanism for keeping a check on these kind of things,��� he added. Army had last week given permission to ATS to interrogate Purohit. Purohit, the police allege, had attended one of the meeting attended by the arrested accused prior to the blast.