Navy sets up probe panel for submarine mishap

New Delhi: Amid mounting criticism over his handling of the situation following the submarine mishap, defence minister A.K. Antony said on Thursday that he was “saddened” by the resignation of Adm. D.K. Joshi as Navy chief, saying the latter had been “emotionally disturbed” by the spate of incidents on naval vessels.

A day after resigning as chief, Adm. Joshi wrote to his senior colleagues, saying he was “firm” on taking responsibility for the mishaps that had taken place. “I consulted only myself and my wife before taking the decision to resign. After the submarine mishap, I was firm that I should take the responsibility for it,” he said in an internal message to senior naval officers.

While the defence minister himself has so far not indicated any intention to resign after mounting criticism from a section of ex-servicemen over the government’s handling of the entire episode and the current state of defence preparedness, sources said “all scenarios” had been discussed.

In any case, Mr Antony has only a few more weeks left in office as defence minister in the UPA-2 government before the Lok Sabha elections. Hitting out at the minister for resignation of Adm. Joshi and the submarine mishap, the Opposition BJP said Mr Antony should resign on moral grounds. Former defence minister Jaswant Singh, a senior BJP leader, said all three wings of the armed forces were facing problems under Mr Antony’s charge and that he should quit taking moral responsibility for the fallout.

Meanwhie, the Navy on Thursday constituted a high-level inquiry headed by an officer of the rank of Rear Admiral to look into all the submarine mishaps, including the one on Wednesday.