NEW DELHI, Jan 29 India's army has ordered the court martial of one of its top generals over his alleged involvement in an illegal land deal, officials said on Friday.

Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash is the highest ranking officer to face court martial in the history of India's million-plus military.

Army chief general Deepak Kapoor ordered the proceedings after Defence Minister A.K. Antony sought stern action against Prakash, who is slated to retire on Sunday, the officials said.

Gen Prakash holds the rank of military secretary and is one of the country's eight key military advisers.

If convicted, he could face imprisonment as well as lose his rank and his pension.

“The trial will begin after the army names the judges for the general court martial of General Prakash,” a senior defence ministry official said on condition that he not be named.

Gen Prakash is among four senior officers facing investigation over charges that they gave the go-ahead for a builder to acquire a 70-acre plot of army land at a throwaway price in the Himalayan resort of Darjeeling.

A string of other eye-popping fraud cases has damaged the military — the world's fourth-largest — in recent years.

A colonel seeking military honours as a route to promotion was sacked after he was caught faking gun battles with militants by sprinkling tomato ketchup on civilians in 2003.

Press coverage earned the disgraced officer the nickname “Ketchup Colonel” and led to a military investigation into other medal seekers.

A year later, a commander was arrested after he earned the sobriquet “Brigadier Booze” for selling subsidised military liquor.

There have been more than 7,000 court martial proceedings between 2000 and 2006, the latest year for which figures are available, pointing to falling standards in the Indian military, analysts say.

Most recently, disciplinary action was taken last month against 41 officers who sold their weapons and ammunition on the black market in Bhutan.—AFP