Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag named new Army chief

[ExtraOdinary]

Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag named new Army chief - The Times of India

NEW DELHI: The government on Tuesday cleared Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag's appointment as the next Army chief after General Bikram Singh retires on July 31, adhering to the seniority principle to put at rest the succession worries in the1.18-million strong force.

This last major appointment of the UPA-II regime, just before the Lok Sabha election results are declared on May 16, was cleared by the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) chaired by PM Manmohan Singh on Tuesday afternoon.

This came after the defence ministry on Monday recommended to the ACC that Lieutenant General Suhag's name be cleared to take over as the 26th Army chief, barely hours after receiving the nod from the Election Commission (EC), as was reported by TOI.

Lieutenant General Suhag (59), who was commissioned into 4/5 Gorkha Rifles in June 1974, will have a 29-month as the chief of the world's second-largest standing Army till December 31, 2016. He will be the second Gorkha Rifles officer after late Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, regarded as the prime architect of the 1971 liberation of Bangladesh, to become the Army chief.

In clearing Lieutenant General Suhag's name, the Congress-led government junked the BJP's stand that the "lame-duck government" should not be in a "great rush" to fill crucial vacancies just before it is to demit office in violation of "all democratic propriety and political probity".

The government's stand was that the "apolitical" appointment had been done as per the well-established principle of seniority in the armed forces, under which the senior-most lieutenant general, vice-admiral or air marshal becomes the Army, Navy or IAF chief with supersession being extremely rare.

"When Gen Bikram Singh retires on July 31, Lieutenant General Suhag will be the senior-most serving officer in the Army. As per tradition over the years, a new service chief is usually named two to three months in advance, with the duration having ranged from 58 to 89 days. Lieutenant General Suhag's name has been announced 79 days in advance," said an official.

The BJP, however, had even complained to the Election Commission (EC) last month, with former Army chief Gen V K Singh — now BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Ghaziabad — keeping up his sharp attack on the Bikram-Suhag line of succession.

If Lieutenant General Suhag was overlooked, the second senior-most serving lieutenant general, Southern Army Command chief Ashok Singh, would have been the front-runner for the post. Lieutenant General Ashok Singh's son is married to Gen V K Singh's daughter, as earlier reported by TOI.

Gen V K Singh, in fact, had even imposed a discipline and vigilance (DV) promotion ban on Lieutenant General Suhag just before retiring as the Army chief in 2012. He charged Lieutenant General Suhag with abdicating responsibility in handling a botched operation by an intelligence and surveillance unit under him as the 3 Corps commander in Dimapur.

But soon after Gen V K Singh retired in May 2012, following a messy battle over his actual date of birth with the UPA government, Gen Bikram Singh had lifted the DV ban on Lieutenant General Suhag, clearing his promotions first as the Eastern Army commander and then the vice-chief, with defence minister A K Antony's concurrence.

 

[Levina]

Hmmm why is there so much politics in army these days???

Btw this Lt.Gen Suhag

It would be interesting to see Gen(rtd).VK singh as our next defence Minister and Lt.Gen Suhag as Army chief.
Congress has played its politics well.

 

[Indo-guy]

Hmmm why is there so much politics in army these days???

Btw this Lt.Gen Suhag

View attachment 29905

It would be interesting to see Gen(rtd).VK singh as our next defence Minister and Lt.Gen Suhag as Army chief.
Congress has played its politics well.

Naming of next army chief is not a dictat cast in stone .

New government especially if it's NDA led by Modi can very well reverse this decision .

Both BJP (especially Ret Gen VK Singh ) and UPA are to be blamed for politicizing military ...mores so UPA .

Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag named new Army chief - The Times of India

NEW DELHI: The government on Tuesday cleared Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag's appointment as the next Army chief after General Bikram Singh retires on July 31, adhering to the seniority principle to put at rest the succession worries in the1.18-million strong force.

This last major appointment of the UPA-II regime, just before the Lok Sabha election results are declared on May 16, was cleared by the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) chaired by PM Manmohan Singh on Tuesday afternoon.

This came after the defence ministry on Monday recommended to the ACC that Lieutenant General Suhag's name be cleared to take over as the 26th Army chief, barely hours after receiving the nod from the Election Commission (EC), as was reported by TOI.

Lieutenant General Suhag (59), who was commissioned into 4/5 Gorkha Rifles in June 1974, will have a 29-month as the chief of the world's second-largest standing Army till December 31, 2016. He will be the second Gorkha Rifles officer after late Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw, regarded as the prime architect of the 1971 liberation of Bangladesh, to become the Army chief.

In clearing Lieutenant General Suhag's name, the Congress-led government junked the BJP's stand that the "lame-duck government" should not be in a "great rush" to fill crucial vacancies just before it is to demit office in violation of "all democratic propriety and political probity".

The government's stand was that the "apolitical" appointment had been done as per the well-established principle of seniority in the armed forces, under which the senior-most lieutenant general, vice-admiral or air marshal becomes the Army, Navy or IAF chief with supersession being extremely rare.

"When Gen Bikram Singh retires on July 31, Lieutenant General Suhag will be the senior-most serving officer in the Army. As per tradition over the years, a new service chief is usually named two to three months in advance, with the duration having ranged from 58 to 89 days. Lieutenant General Suhag's name has been announced 79 days in advance," said an official.

The BJP, however, had even complained to the Election Commission (EC) last month, with former Army chief Gen V K Singh — now BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Ghaziabad — keeping up his sharp attack on the Bikram-Suhag line of succession.

If Lieutenant General Suhag was overlooked, the second senior-most serving lieutenant general, Southern Army Command chief Ashok Singh, would have been the front-runner for the post. Lieutenant General Ashok Singh's son is married to Gen V K Singh's daughter, as earlier reported by TOI.

Gen V K Singh, in fact, had even imposed a discipline and vigilance (DV) promotion ban on Lieutenant General Suhag just before retiring as the Army chief in 2012. He charged Lieutenant General Suhag with abdicating responsibility in handling a botched operation by an intelligence and surveillance unit under him as the 3 Corps commander in Dimapur.

But soon after Gen V K Singh retired in May 2012, following a messy battle over his actual date of birth with the UPA government, Gen Bikram Singh had lifted the DV ban on Lieutenant General Suhag, clearing his promotions first as the Eastern Army commander and then the vice-chief, with defence minister A K Antony's concurrence.

already one thread is running on this topic

Political impropriety ! Govt announces Lt Gen Suhag as next Army chief despite BJP objections

 

[Abingdonboy]

@Indo-guy bro don't drag the new COAS's name through the mud just because of the general dislike/distrust of the UPA. I personally believe there is nothing wrong with this accession, since Bikram Singh became COAS Dulbir Singh has been in line to become the next COAS- fro 2 years now this has been on the cards and only now (during an election) the BJP are raising their objections. This has a LOT to do (actually everything to do) with VK Singh, it is his belief that the entire age issue that forced him out the door was because there was some nefarious conspiracy hatched to get Dulbir Singh as COAS, this was the narrative HE put out there because this is the only way he could defend himself on the issue. 2 years down the line and he has been pretty much silent on the matter until election time comes around (interesting that, not to mention he is now part of the BJP). His allegations on the TATRA trucks have come to NOUGHT- the CBI closed the case a few weeks back because there was absolutely 0 evidence of wrongdoing only an unsubstantiated claim by VK Singh.

Now I don't know what Mr VK Singh is playing at but it certainly seems that he is using anti-UPA sentiment to further his own interests I mean he has quickly been absorbed by the BJP and is set to attain quite a lofty position in the next Govt. He has broken with almost every established norm and thrust himself into politics immediately after retirement and let's not forget took the Govt to court (a move that is just not done in the Indian Mil) whilst still serving. Who knows how long he has been planning this? Possibly he was always looking to get into politics after retiring and has set him self up nicely to do the same.

I have no doubt that VKS has used the whole matter to further his own goals but through the process has tarnished the image of the institution that has made him all he is, I'm sorry but this is just not on.

Anyway, let's not forget, the post of COAS whilst being senior in the IA is not all that powerful a position. The Indian Mil is still 100% subservient to the civilian authority so even IF (and that's a big if) he has ties to Congress (again entirely unsubstantiated and bordering on slander really) so what? The BJP govt (looks to be the next GoI) will still be able to dictate to him quite easily and he will not have any say on national policy.

 

[Indo-guy]

@Indo-guy bro don't drag the new COAS's name through the mud just because of the general dislike/distrust of the UPA. I personally believe there is nothing wrong with this accession, since Bikram Singh became COAS Dulbir Singh has been in line to become the next COAS- fro 2 years now this has been on the cards and only now (during an election) the BJP are raising their objections. This has a LOT to do (actually everything to do) with VK Singh, it is his belief that the entire age issue that forced him out the door was because there was some nefarious conspiracy hatched to get Dulbir Singh as COAS, this was the narrative HE put out there because this is the only way he could defend himself on the issue. 2 years down the line and he has been pretty much silent on the matter until election time comes around (interesting that, not to mention he is now part of the BJP). His allegations on the TATRA trucks have come to NOUGHT- the CBI closed the case a few weeks back because there was absolutely 0 evidence of wrongdoing only an unsubstantiated claim by VK Singh.

Now I don't know what Mr VK Singh is playing at but it certainly seems that he is using anti-UPA sentiment to further his own interests I mean he has quickly been absorbed by the BJP and is set to attain quite a lofty position in the next Govt. He has broken with almost every established norm and thrust himself into politics immediately after retirement and let's not forget took the Govt to court (a move that is just not done in the Indian Mil) whilst still serving. Who knows how long he has been planning this? Possibly he was always looking to get into politics after retiring and has set him self up nicely to do the same.

I have no doubt that VKS has used the whole matter to further his own goals but through the process has tarnished the image of the institution that has made him all he is, I'm sorry but this is just not on.

Anyway, let's not forget, the post of COAS whilst being senior in the IA is not all that powerful a position. The Indian Mil is still 100% subservient to the civilian authority so even IF (and that's a big if) he has ties to Congress (again entirely unsubstantiated and bordering on slander really) so what? The BJP govt (looks to be the next GoI) will still be able to dictate to him quite easily and he will not have any say on national policy.

Please refer to #9 of this thread

Political impropriety ! Govt announces Lt Gen Suhag as next Army chief despite BJP objections


in which I urged other members to keep the Vice army chief out of mud slinging match ..

 

[illusion8]

@Indo-guy bro don't drag the new COAS's name through the mud just because of the general dislike/distrust of the UPA. I personally believe there is nothing wrong with this accession, since Bikram Singh became COAS Dulbir Singh has been in line to become the next COAS- fro 2 years now this has been on the cards and only now (during an election) the BJP are raising their objections. This has a LOT to do (actually everything to do) with VK Singh, it is his belief that the entire age issue that forced him out the door was because there was some nefarious conspiracy hatched to get Dulbir Singh as COAS, this was the narrative HE put out there because this is the only way he could defend himself on the issue. 2 years down the line and he has been pretty much silent on the matter until election time comes around (interesting that, not to mention he is now part of the BJP). His allegations on the TATRA trucks have come to NOUGHT- the CBI closed the case a few weeks back because there was absolutely 0 evidence of wrongdoing only an unsubstantiated claim by VK Singh.

Now I don't know what Mr VK Singh is playing at but it certainly seems that he is using anti-UPA sentiment to further his own interests I mean he has quickly been absorbed by the BJP and is set to attain quite a lofty position in the next Govt. He has broken with almost every established norm and thrust himself into politics immediately after retirement and let's not forget took the Govt to court (a move that is just not done in the Indian Mil) whilst still serving. Who knows how long he has been planning this? Possibly he was always looking to get into politics after retiring and has set him self up nicely to do the same.

I have no doubt that VKS has used the whole matter to further his own goals but through the process has tarnished the image of the institution that has made him all he is, I'm sorry but this is just not on.

Anyway, let's not forget, the post of COAS whilst being senior in the IA is not all that powerful a position. The Indian Mil is still 100% subservient to the civilian authority so even IF (and that's a big if) he has ties to Congress (again entirely unsubstantiated and bordering on slander really) so what? The BJP govt (looks to be the next GoI) will still be able to dictate to him quite easily and he will not have any say on national policy.

VKS is no angel, but what was the hurry in naming the COAS on the last day of the government?

 

[Indo-guy]

@Abingdonboy

Now I don't know what Mr VK Singh is playing at but it certainly seems that he is using anti-UPA sentiment to further his own interests I mean he has quickly been absorbed by the BJP and is set to attain quite a lofty position in the next Govt. He has broken with almost every established norm and thrust himself into politics immediately after retirement and let's not forget took the Govt to court (a move that is just not done in the Indian Mil) whilst still serving. Who knows how long he has been planning this? Possibly he was always looking to get into politics after retiring and has set him self up nicely to do the same.

I have no doubt that VKS has used the whole matter to further his own goals but through the process has tarnished the image of the institution that has made him all he is, I'm sorry but this is just not on.

Anyway, let's not forget, the post of COAS whilst being senior in the IA is not all that powerful a position. The Indian Mil is still 100% subservient to the civilian authority so even IF (and that's a big if) he has ties to Congress (again entirely unsubstantiated and bordering on slander really) so what? The BJP govt (looks to be the next GoI) will still be able to dictate to him quite easily and he will not have any say on national policy.

where and how I drag the name of new COAS through mud ?

@Abingdonboy you should omit and edit reference to me saying that I should not drag COAS name through mud ...because simply I did not .

 

[Abingdonboy]

Please refer to #9 of this thread

Political impropriety ! Govt announces Lt Gen Suhag as next Army chief despite BJP objections


in which I urged other members to keep the Vice army chief out of mud slinging match ..

I'm aware but bro just by questioning it you are by extension casting a shadow on this man who looks very qualified for the COAS post. You are making out he is some how a Congress stooge and thus his integrity is compromised by this assertion.

VKS is no angel, but what was the hurry in naming the COAS on the last day of the government?

Maybe to stop the BJP from disrupting the entire process? VKS now being aligned to the BJP and having already made his position against Dulbir Singh clear would surely have ensured the COAS accession process was stalled and that is just not on.

 

[Indo-guy]

@Indo-guy bro don't drag the new COAS's name through the mud just because of the general dislike/distrust of the UPA. I personally believe there is nothing wrong with this accession, since Bikram Singh became COAS Dulbir Singh has been in line to become the next COAS- fro 2 years now this has been on the cards and only now (during an election) the BJP are raising their objections. This has a LOT to do (actually everything to do) with VK Singh, it is his belief that the entire age issue that forced him out the door was because there was some nefarious conspiracy hatched to get Dulbir Singh as COAS, this was the narrative HE put out there because this is the only way he could defend himself on the issue. 2 years down the line and he has been pretty much silent on the matter until election time comes around (interesting that, not to mention he is now part of the BJP). His allegations on the TATRA trucks have come to NOUGHT- the CBI closed the case a few weeks back because there was absolutely 0 evidence of wrongdoing only an unsubstantiated claim by VK Singh.

Now I don't know what Mr VK Singh is playing at but it certainly seems that he is using anti-UPA sentiment to further his own interests I mean he has quickly been absorbed by the BJP and is set to attain quite a lofty position in the next Govt. He has broken with almost every established norm and thrust himself into politics immediately after retirement and let's not forget took the Govt to court (a move that is just not done in the Indian Mil) whilst still serving. Who knows how long he has been planning this? Possibly he was always looking to get into politics after retiring and has set him self up nicely to do the same.

I have no doubt that VKS has used the whole matter to further his own goals but through the process has tarnished the image of the institution that has made him all he is, I'm sorry but this is just not on.

Anyway, let's not forget, the post of COAS whilst being senior in the IA is not all that powerful a position. The Indian Mil is still 100% subservient to the civilian authority so even IF (and that's a big if) he has ties to Congress (again entirely unsubstantiated and bordering on slander really) so what? The BJP govt (looks to be the next GoI) will still be able to dictate to him quite easily and he will not have any say on national policy.

what is wrong with this ascension is the timing .

UPA government has no moral authority to name successor of current army chief when it is lame-duck and when it's matter of few hours to days when new government will be installed ..

same government took several months to fill in the vacancy of Navy chief ...and why they are in hurry to name successor to Army chief ???

 

[Inqhilab]

The first and the loudest to complain against news of the outgoing Manmohan Singh government initiating the process to select a new Army chief was General V.K. Singh, now transitioning to full-time politics as a BJP Lok Sabha contestant.

The protest was strange, particularly coming from a former Army chief himself. The long-established Indian tradition in appointing service chiefs is about respecting seniority, irrespective of which government is in power. Supersessions are a rare exception. In fact, Gen V.K. Singh himself is a beneficiary of this tradition. He was made Army chief on 1 April 2010, despite grave reservations expressed on record by his predecessor, Gen Deepak Kapoor, whose apprehensions were borne out by V.K. Singh's tumultuous and very controversial tenure.

Now, after the calm of V.K. Singh's successor Gen Bikram Singh's tenure, which is due to end in July, the succession tumult is returning to haunt the Army.

The current Vice-Chief, Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag, will be the senior-most Army officer when Bikram Singh retires, and by dint of seniority and tradition, is the front-runner for Army chief, no matter which government is selecting a chief. And unlike the recent case of the Navy, where the senior-most Vice-Admiral, Shekhar Sinha was overlooked on grounds of "moral responsibility" following a spate of accidents under his command, there's no such obstacle in Suhag's path.

General V.K. Singh's objections would, thus, appear curious, unless seen in context. In case Suhag is discredited as a UPA favourite or otherwise ruled out, the next-in-line for appointment as chief is the Southern Army Commander, Lt Gen Ashok Singh, who is related to V.K. Singh through marriage. V.K. Singh's daughter is married to Ashok Singh's son.

While in office, Gen V.K. Singh targeted both Bikram Singh and Suhag with a ferocity which stunned even the biggest cynics in the Army. V.K. Singh not just disapproved of both Bikram and Suhag, but his tenure coincided with determined campaigns to derail the careers of both these officers who were in line to succeed him.

Curiously, Ashok Singh would be the beneficiary if either Bikram or Suhag's careers were aborted.

Training his guns first at Bikram, V.K. Singh had openly slammed the succession chain, which his supporters claimed had been rigged to put Sikhs as Army chiefs (incidentally, Suhag is not a Sikh). He pointed fingers at former Army chief, Gen J.J. Singh, incidentally the first Sikh Army chief, for having patronised a communal succession chain, also insinuating that this had the blessings of the Sikh Prime Minister. This charge was strongly denied by Gen J.J. Singh, who, ironically put V.K. Singh in the succession chain by promoting him Lt Gen in 2006. The baseline for an officer to come in contention for the post of Army chief is promotion to the rank of Lt General. Thereafter, how far an officer progresses is a factor of his age relative to those of his peers. There is no deep selection after promotion to 3-star rank (Lt General). Bikram Singh was promoted Lt General during the tenure of General Deepak Kapoor, who was not known to see eye-to-eye with J.J. Singh.

It was even loudly alleged by V.K. Singh's supporters that Bikram Singh was related to the Prime Minister through his wife. This was factually incorrect.

The campaign against Bikram Singh was given a distinctly communal overtone, but Bikram Singh was to face even more vicious charges. It was alleged, first by whisper and innuendo and then through a PIL, that he faked an encounter in Kashmir. The PIL was filed in the J&K High Court by an unknown NGO, which was later probed for its sources of funding which were allegedly linked to a rogue unit in Military Intelligence.

Bikram Singh's detractors even made an issue of his Muslim daughter-in-law, by wrongly insinuating that she was a Pakistani.

Had Bikram Singh not made it as Army chief, the next-in-line to succeed V.K. Singh would have been Lt Gen K.T. Parnaik, whose retirement schedule would have put V.K. Singh kin, Lt Gen Ashok Singh as the frontrunner after him.

Bikram Singh survived the campaign against him, unprecedented in the Indian Army for its viciousness and communal colour. It was then that Lt Gen Dalbir Suhag came in the line of fire.

In March 2012, on the day the then Chinese President Hu Jintao was in New Delhi for the BRICS Summit, Gen V.K. Singh asked the CBI to probe Dalbir Suhag for alleged corruption in the procurement of parachutes during his tenure as Inspector General in the China-specific special force, the SFF. India has always denied to the Chinese the existence of this force, and ironically, the cover was blown off this secret force by V.K. Singh. This organisation was all over the headlines the day Hu Jintao was in town. The CBI threw out this complaint as frivolous.

V.K. Singh reserved his frontal assault on Dalbir Singh Suhag for the last week of his tenure. On the basis of a complaint of theft of a mobile during a low-level Military Intelligence raid on a suspected ULFA hideout led by a female captain in Jorhat in late 2011, V.K. Singh put Dalbir Singh on a promotion ban (Discipline & Vigilance ban) without first subjecting him to an inquiry. Dalbir, then commander of 3 Corps, was accused of lapse of command. Despite approval by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet of his promotion to the rank of Army Commander, which would put him in the line of succession, he was rendered ineligible by this unexpected ban by V.K. Singh. This ban was revoked by General Bikram Singh soon after taking over as chief.

No prizes for guessing who the immediate beneficiary of the relegation of Dalbir Singh Suhag would have been: Lt Gen Ashok Singh.

An Army court of inquiry ultimately ended with indicting a havaldar for stealing a mobile during the Jorhat raid, on the basis of which V.K. Singh wanted to unsettle the chain of succession to the post of Army chief.

Another interesting nugget on the V.K. Singh-Ashok Singh bonding was the troop movement to the outskirts of Delhi in January 2012 which "spooked" the UPA government and left it suspecting the intention of the Army chief at the height of his confrontation with the government over his age. A regiment of armoured vehicles from the Hisar-based 33 Armoured Division was moved to Delhi's periphery, causing much consternation and making the Defence Secretary summon the DG Military Operations to explain the movement. This unit was under 1 Corps, which was then commanded by Lt Gen Ashok Singh. V.K. Singh's headquarters dismissed this as a routine exercise. A bit curiously, neither the South-Western Army Commander (to which 1 Corps reports) nor the Western Army Commander (under whose command the Delhi Area falls) was aware of this movement when the matter was brought to their notice by intelligence agencies.

Gen V.K. Singh's renewed attack on Dalbir Singh comes in the final stages of the Defence Ministry processing the succession after Gen Bikram Singh. V.K. Singh has reiterated his severe reservations on Dalbir Singh, a soldier of humble origins, who is now being painted by some as a UPA general


V.K. Singh makes final bid to derail Army succession

 

[Indo-guy]

I'm aware but bro just by questioning it you are by extension casting a shadow on this man who looks very qualified for the COAS post. You are making out he is some how a Congress stooge and thus his integrity is compromised by this assertion.


Maybe to stop the BJP from disrupting the entire process? VKS now being aligned to the BJP and having already made his position against Dulbir Singh clear would surely have ensured the COAS accession process was stalled and that is just not on.

I did not paint him as Congress stooge in any way ...refer to the discussion in the thread that I started .

I am casting shadow on UPA's decision that is taken in haste ....which is not in keeping with political propriety .

UPA should have left the decision to the new government .

 

[StormShadow]

If we start mixing politics and military, we may endup like pakistan!

 

[Indo-guy]

Maybe to stop the BJP from disrupting the entire process? VKS now being aligned to the BJP and having already made his position against Dulbir Singh clear would surely have ensured the COAS accession process was stalled and that is just not on.

Two wrongs do not make one right !!!

 

[illusion8]

Maybe to stop the BJP from disrupting the entire process? VKS now being aligned to the BJP and having already made his position against Dulbir Singh clear would surely have ensured the COAS accession process was stalled and that is just not on.

I wouldn't credit the UPA ex government with any credibility to do the right thing or with a moral stand, so doing the right thing does not go down well with the hurry in naming a new COAS on their last day.

 

[acid rain]

This is just a parting low blow punch by the congis to complicate matters for the next govt and make it a controvesial issue. Typical of the congis to stir up trouble for others.