New Delhi:
A Delhi Court is expected to decide today whether to summon Army Chief General V K Singh in connection with a defamation suit filed against him by retired officer, Lieutenant General Tejinder Singh. In the initial hearing on April 26, the court had deferred its decision.
Lt Gen Tejinder Singh claims that allegations made against him in a March 5 press release issued by the Army are "completely false and concocted". One of those allegations is that he offered General VK Singh Rs. 14 crore in bribe on behalf of a company called Vectra in 2010. The Army Chief had caused a stir when he made that allegation in an interview in March.
The matter is now being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which recorded Gen Singh's statement last month and on Wednesday questioned Lt Gen Tejinder Singh.
Ravi Rishi, the CEO of Vectra, which provides Tatra trucks to the Army, has also been questioned by the CBI. Mr Rishi has denied that Lt GenTejinder Singh either formally or informally represented Vectra as a middleman.
Lt Gen Tejinder Singh had testified before the court last month and sought that the court summon the Army Chief.
The retired Army officer had also approached the Supreme Court last month, asking it to sanction a CBI inquiry against the Army Chief for allegedly ordering the illegal monitoring of phones in the Defence Ministry. Lt Gen Tejinder Singh says the CBI should raid the homes and offices of Army Chief General VK Singh and his relatives.