"Each incident is a matter of concern to me but armed forces are better trained to handle such situations. They are handling it in their own way. Today also I had a brief discussion with the army chief and they are handling it," he said on the sidelines of a function here.
The Minister was asked about the three major incidents of brawl between officers and jawans in the army, the latest involving personnel of 16 Cavalry unit in Samba in Jammu and Kashmir after a jawan committed suicide.
In May, similar situation had erupted in 226 artillery regiment in Ladakh and in a separate case, officers and jawans of 45 Cavalry unit had fought with each other in June last year in Gurdaspur in Punjab.
Court of Inquiry (CoI) in all the three incidents is under progress.
Asked about suicide cases in the armed forces, Antony said, "Even if there is one suicide in armed forces, I am always pained. Compared to the past, the number of suicides and fratricides in armed forces are slightly reduced.
"But I am not happy as even suicide by one soldier is a matter of pain to me. But over the years, we have been able to reduce the numbers gradually," he said.
Asked about the increasing Chinese pressure along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Finger Area in Sikkim, the Defence Minister dismissed it as an "aberration" saying the overall situation all along the boundary was peaceful. (MORE)
