File photo of General VK Singh
Former Army Chief General VK Singh has tendered an "unqualified apology" to the Supreme Court for his remarks following the top court's verdict in the age row with the Centre.
"To attribute unworthy or illegitimate motives to the judges who dealt with my withdrawn petition on February 10, 2012 was far from my mind. I hold them in high respect and I hereby tender an unqualified apology if unwittingly, due to erroneous reporting of my words, I have created an impression of making some objectionable imputation," General Singh is reported to have said in his reply on November 16.
The 63-year-old former army officer had allegedly questioned the Supreme Court's handling of his case against the government over his age.
If he had won the case, he would have been eligible for another year in office. But he dropped his lawsuit in January after the Supreme Court indicated it was likely to rule against him.
The top court in October issued notice to him, saying it amounted to "scandalising" and undermining the authority of the court.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled on November 20.
General Singh's tenure as Army Chief was studded with major controversies. He set up a military intelligence unit with 30 members that was accused of spying on the Defence Ministry.
In September, he was seen at an ex-servicemen meet in Haryana's Rewari, the first rally addressed by Narendra Modi after he was chosen the Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate.