Am I Pak Army Chief? Gen Singh on age row

[livingdead]

When did he raise his first objection. Can age be determined by DNA testing?
I think he should bow out if the govt is not keen to oblige, he is just making a mess.

 

[Bang Galore]

When did he raise his first objection. Can age be determined by DNA testing?
I think he should bow out if the govt is not keen to oblige, he is just making a mess.

The Supreme Court is very clear, the school leaving certificate is the ultimate proof of a person's age. According to that, Gen.V.K. Singh was born in 1951 & he is correct in pressing that point. However his own application form for admission into the IMA, supposedly filled by his teacher wrongly mentions the yob as 1950. That has remained uncorrected & creates succession changes if his age is changed now. Very tricky question, the government fears what will happen in the SC if the chief approaches it as well as the precedent being set, for no sitting chief has ever sued the government before. The government is caught between a rock & a hard place. As also the CoAS who will have his reputation tarnished if he backs off from a supposed fight for honour.

 

[livingdead]

The Supreme Court is very clear, the school leaving certificate is the ultimate proof of a person's age. According to that, Gen.V.K. Singh was born in 1951 & he is correct in pressing that point. However his own application form for admission into the IMA, supposedly filled by his teacher wrongly mentions the yob as 1950. That has remained uncorrected & creates succession changes if his age is changed now. Very tricky question, the government fears what will happen in the SC if the chief approaches it as well as the precedent being set, for no sitting chief has ever sued the government before. The government is caught between a rock & a hard place. As also the CoAS who will have his reputation tarnished if he backs off from a supposed fight for honour.

Did not they verify his age against the matric certificate? When did he complain first time?

 

[Manas]

The interesting question is which DOB was taken into consideration while he promoted for the post of Chief of staff ??
If it was 1950 ,then it can be changed to 1951 as it will disturb many future appointments.
Thats why i think govt can't extend his service for another year on the basis of his DOB of 1951.

 

[Bang Galore]

The interesting question is which DOB was taken into consideration while he promoted for the post of Chief of staff ??
If it was 1950 ,then it can be changed to 1951 as it will disturb many future appointments.
Thats why i think govt can't extend his service for another year on the basis of his DOB of 1951.

The CoAS position is based on seniority not DoB. However there is enormous confusion on previous promotions.

Earlier this month, Defence Minister A K Antony had told the Rajya Sabha, "The date of birth of General VK Singh, Chief of Army Staff, has been maintained as 10th May 1950 at the time of his selection as Corps Commander (Lieutenant General) in 2006 as well as his subsequent promotions as Army Commander in 2008 and Chief of the Army Staff in 2010"

But the Military Secretary's branch in the Army Headquarters, that handles promotions and transfers, has contradicted the ministry. Military Secretary Lieutenant General GM Nair has informed the ministry that General VK Singh's promotion from the rank of a Brigadier in 1996 to that of a Lieutenant General in 2005 had May 10, 1951 as the date of birth.


Read more at: General VK Singh's age controversy: Army contradicts ministry

Did not they verify his age against the matric certificate? When did he complain first time?

Unfortunately, a thorough vetting of the application does not seem to have been done. Who knows, they might have declared VK Singh ineligible to be in the army if the distortion was found at the very beginning itself.

 

[asad71]

Age row: Army chief likely to sue govt after rejection of his plea[/B]

The chief of army staff, General V.K. Singh, has been contemplating dragging the government to court over the high profile age issue, sources told Headlines Today.

No serving chief of the Indian Army has ever sued his government before. But the unthinkable in the history of Indian civil-military relations seems not too far. Stung by the final rejection by the defence ministry to his statutory complaint over the age issue, Gen Singh has run out of options.

While the army chief keeps his cards close to his chest, speculation were rife about confrontations between him and the UPA government.

The debate has precipitated over a conflicting clash of birthdates. While one set of documents declares the chief's date of birth as May 10, 1950, another puts it down a year later in 1951.

The government rejection means the chief would be taken to have been born in 1950 and therefore he would retire this year. If it did not, he would have retired in 2013, giving him a full extra year in office. The conflict also affects the succession line in the army.

A legal expert said, "As things stand, the army chief will be emboldened by the fact that four former chief justices have supported his age claim... The chief is also under advisement by a legal team that if he plans to take any action, he should do it while he still serving since that would have maximum impact."

"The chief's campaign has been predicated on honour and justice... to back off without winning could affect morale and perceptions within the ranks," the expert added.

The chief has reposed faith in veteran Congressman Pranab Mukherjee, a former defence minister himself. A five-minute meeting on December 30 was dismissed as a courtesy call, but sources revealed it was to appraise the senior politician about how delicate the situation was.

The army has, however, officially said that reports on the chief's intentions were currently in the realm of speculation.

 

[asad71]

So much for the efficiency of the Indian military establishment. VK Singh should take over, and sort out the mischievous "babus" in the Indian bureaucracy who are famous for their inefficiency as well as their ability to search out the pin in a blanket.

 

[IND151]

The govt is being an idiot.. One of the 17 places in the records has his DoB as 1950 against the actual date of 1951 and they are doing all this tamasha instead of fixing the clerical error.. Morons..

i agree

but i believe something more is happening behind the walls

 

[T90TankGuy]

So much for the efficiency of the Indian military establishment. VK Singh should take over, and sort out the mischievous "babus" in the Indian bureaucracy who are famous for their inefficiency as well as their ability to search out the pin in a blanket.

feeling ok now mate? since you expelled you quota of hate

IMHO i believe he should retire or resign . this has gone long enough

 

[Xeric]

He says that he is being treated as if he is Pakistani, but this dude is almost 'Pakistani'
Army chief in waiting - Lt Gen Bikram Singh - YouTube

 

[Kinetic]

He says that he is being treated as if he is Pakistani, but this dude is almost 'Pakistani'

He must be joking, who can talk against army chief in Pakistan? kiyani's term is over but ... you know... things are different in Pakistan from rest of the world.

 

[Xeric]

He must be joking, who can talk against army chief in Pakistan? kiyani's term is over but ... you know... things are different in Pakistan from rest of the world.

Watch the fringing video first.

 

[Abingdonboy]

Difficult situation for both the GoI/Moad and the COAS. There are set rules in place and these have to be followed regardless of rank even if this has been caused by a clerical error, the guidelines have to be followed. Testament to the armed forces' apolitical stance is that such a situation has occurred. In many other countries the military leaders weild so much power this issue would never have come to light and the chief would have got what he wanted straight away.