Coast Guard deputy inspector general BK Loshali was sacked for contradicting the government’s stand on the sinking of a Pakistani boat off the Gujarat coast last December. An official from the defence ministry said Loshali was dismissed on Saturday by a five-member General Court Martial in Mumbai.

Loshali said in February 2015, “I hope you remember 31st December night. I was there at Gandhinagar and I told at night, blow the boat off. We don’t want to serve them biryani.” His remarks contradicted the defence ministry’s stand that the boat blew up on its own.

Defence minister Manohar Parrikar and the Coast Guard said the boat’s crew was responsible for the explosion after an hour-long chase by a Coast Guard ship. The Pakistani vessel was suspected to have been carrying terrorists. Loshali denied his remarks at first, saying he had been misquoted, but after The Indian Express released a video of him making the statement the Coast Guard issued a showcause notice to him.