Chandigarh: Chief of Army Staff General V K
Singh has rebutted a claim by a Major General, who has alleged
that his Annual Confidential Report (ACR) was "spoilt" by
Singh after he refused to change his date of birth.
Major General T S Handa, in his petition before the Armed
Forces Tribunal (AFT) in April last year, had alleged that his
Annual Confidential Report (ACR) was "spoilt" by Chief of Army
Staff General V K Singh after he refused to change his date of
birth.
Gen V K Singh in his reply submitted before the AFT said
that there were no extraneous considerations or malafide on
his part while assessing the performance of one of his junior
during his tenure in the Eastern Command.
Gen Singh also refuted that he had pressurised the
officer`s immediate senior for his assessment.
Gen Singh contended that he had assessed Major General
T S Handa entirely on the basis of his performance.
The Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) had yesterday adjourned
till March one the case in which Major General T S Handa had
accused the Chief of Army Staff.
The Major General had alleged that the incident happened
when he was posted as deputy military secretary in the
military secretary branch and Gen Singh`s papers had gone to
his branch during Singh`s tenure as GOC 2 Corps Ambala.
Despite an outstanding career record in the Army he was
not considered for the promotion to the rank of Lt Gen due to
adverse remarks recorded by Gen V K Singh in the capacity of
Army commander of Eastern Command.
Handa had alleged that he was "victimised" by Gen Singh
when he was posted in Ambala as General Officer Commanding
(GOC) of two Corps.
In December 2006, Maj Gen Handa (then a Brigadier) was
posted as the deputy military secretary, selection boards and
complaints, when Gen Singh (then a Lt Gen and GOC of 2 corps
Ambala) had asked the military secretary branch to change his
recorded date of birth from May 10, 1950 to May 10, 1951.
In his petition filed last year, Maj Gen Handa claimed
that the MS branch records the date of birth to be one filled
in the UPSC form by the candidate in his own hand, which in
his case was May 10, 1950.
Handa had alleged that his ACR was spoilt when Gen Singh
was posted as GOC-in-C of eastern Command and Handa was GOC 57
Mountain Division in the North East sector.
The allegations and its reply by the general V K Singh
was submitted before the ATS in the recent past.
The case will come up for hearing on March one.
PTI
