Zee Media Bureau/Sushmita Dutta
New Delhi: After BJP anointed Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate, his first rally was in Rewari, Haryana, where he was seen tearing into the Congress. In this rally, Modi shared the dais with former Army chief General VK Singh. But the development seems to have stoked a new controversy.
According to media reports, during his tenure as the Army chief, funds to the tune of crores were diverted to a Jammu and Kashmir minister to destabilise Omar Abdullah’s government. A string of allegations have been labelled against him - the funds from the Technical Services Division (TSD), a controversial Military Intelligence unit set up by the General in May 2010, have been used by him to secretly destabilise the Jammu and Kashmir government, to pay off an NGO to change the line of succession in the Army top brass and to conduct “unauthorised” covert operations.
The revelations have rattled the entire Army and have pressed a series of measures to curtail the powers of the Military Intelligence unit, and put a tighter control over the covert operations and the use of the secret service funds. The government has taken serious note of the issue and is mulling a CBI inquiry.
But, a larger question is coming out of all these allegations. Is General VK Singh really involved in all these or is he just a victim of political vendetta? Are all these at the behest of some unknown forces?
General VK Singh has been in the eye of storm for quite sometime now. He hanged his boots on 31st May 2012 leaving behind a string of controversies. He had taken over the post of Army chief with a hope of infusing a moral fabric in the force and even acted against many high ranking officers involved in corruption cases. During his tenure as the Army chief, he courted huge controversy when he dragged the government to the Supreme Court over the matter of his date of birth. A big debate was thrown open – whether Army matters could be dealt in civil courts or should they remain within the domains of Army courts only.
His letter to the Prime Minister, which highlighted the grave shortage of ammunition and lack of fighting capabilities of the Army, was leaked under mysteriously and led to huge uproar in Parliament.
General Singh even revealed how an attempt was made to bribe him to clear the purchase of sub-standard vehicles. Post retirement he invited the ire of the government when he shared the dais with Anna Hazare in his Lokpal movement, which showcased his clear displeasure with the way things are run in the government and his stance on corruption.
And this time, he went a step ahead and shared the dais with Congress’ strongest rival and contender for the PM race, Narendra Modi. The Opposition and former Army personnel have slammed the government for targeting General VK Singh. It clearly looks like a case of political vendetta for standing alongside Modi. Many people are questioning the timing of leaking of the inquiry report. It looks very far-fetched as to why an Army General will be interested in toppling a state government.
