Amid the controversy over his year of birth, Chief of the Army Staff General V.K. Singh on Tuesday termed it a “purely personal issue” and not related to the force he heads.
“I think I have said this time and again, this is purely a personal issue and I desist from making any comments on this,” he said while visiting the Republic Day Camp of the National Cadet Corps here.
Asked whether there were any differences with the Defence Ministry on the issue, he said it never existed. “See, there was never any difference, so how can it be there now?” This was the first public reaction by Gen.Singh following reports that speculated at possible remedies, including legal, after the Ministry recently turned down his statutory complaint on the issue.
In July last, the Ministry rejected the request for a change after Attorney-General G.E. Vahanvati gave an opinion that the year of birth be treated as 1950. The date of birth in the records of the Adjutant-General (AG) shows it as May 10, 1951, while it is May 10, 1950 in the records of the Military Secretary (MS). The AG branch is the official record keeper for salary and pension while the MS branch is responsible for promotions and postings.
As per rules, a Service chief can either serve for three years or till the age of 62, whichever is earlier.
Gen. Singh, born on May 10, took charge as the Army Chief on April 1, 2010 from General Deepak Kapoor. Any change in the date of birth could result in an extension and alteration in the line of succession. Confusion prevailed since the school-leaving certificate records his date of birth as May 10, 1951 while the Union Public Service Commission application form for the National Defence Academy examination recorded it a year before.
