AHMEDABAD: More than 300 Army officers and their family members had to go home disappointed when the screening of Salman-starrer "Kick" at cantonment here was cancelled following a public showdown between general officer commanding of 11 Infantry Division, Maj Gen SS Hasabnis, and additional director general of National Cadet Corps, Maj Gen Dilawar Singh. The incident occurred around 8 pm on Sunday.
An Army source said, "Major General Singh informed the staff at Walker Hall that he would arrive with his wife to watch the movie. The 300-seater hall was full when the Singhs reached the hall. The couple sat in the front row where seats for the GOC are reserved. Ten minutes later, Major General Hasabnis walked up to Maj Gen Singh and asked him to vacate the seat in front of everyone in the hall. When Singh refused, Hasabnis asked the staff to cancel the show. Soon, a slide flashed on screen, stating that the movie cannot be shown due to 'technical error'. Everyone went home disappointed."
Within minutes, a message narrating the incident went viral. It stated, "ADG... rank of Major General sat down on GOC's seat, the only seat available at movie hall for general rank officers. For 8 pm show. Requested to vacate as expected he declined. The movie was not run. On instructions of GOC Ahmedabad div. What a shame and immaturity on behalf of GOC Ahmedabad division. All jawans, families, and officers and their families in full view seeing the drama. Shame! (sic)"
Maj Gen Singh reported Sunday's incident to Army headquarters in Pune. On Monday morning, Singh reportedly received a call from Hasabnis apologising for the incident. Repeated attempts to contact Hasabnis were in vain, but wing commander Abhishek Matiman accepted that a message had gone viral on Whatsapp. "I had gone for the movie, too. Suddenly, there was a message on the screen stating the movie was being cancelled due to a technical error and we all left. I am looking into the matter," he said.
Asked who the senior-most Army officer is, he confirmed, "Major General Singh is the senior-most officer here." When contacted, Maj Gen Singh said, "Being the senior officer, I would not like to comment on the conduct of juniors. Whatever the matter is has been reported to higher authority. As a senior, it will always be my endeavour to work with synergy for everyone's betterment."
Major generals 'Kick' up a row at Salman film show - The Times of India
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