The privilege committee of the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Council on Thursday issued summons through Director General of Haryana Police to the former Army Chief Gen (retired) V.K. Singh seeking his presence for his clarification to a television interview, on January 22.
The ruling National Conference MLC and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's confidante Devinder Singh Rana, who has moved the motion alongwith two other NC members and is a member of the upper House privilege panel, said that the meeting took serious note of Gen Singh's absence. Mr Singh had been summoned and directed to appear with his clarifications on January 9.
However the former Army Chief did not appear when the case was called at 11.45 a.m. In his absence, the committee held the proceedings for over an hour. Chairman of the panel Jugal Kishore Sharma of Congress, Ghulam Nabi Monga (congress) besides NC's Ali Mohammad Dar and Mr Rana attended the meeting.
One of Gen Singh's former colleagues in Army , who identified himself as Col retired UB Singh from Banaras, appeared at the House but not with an authorisation to appear before the committee as an attorney. He told The Hindu that Gen Singh had sent a letter, through speed post and a private courier Mr Yashpal but it was not entertained by the Council staff.
Mr Rana claimed that no letter or any other communication through other sources had been received till the meeting started at 11.30 am.
Secretary of Legislative Council Mohammad Ashraf Mir told The Hindu that nothing from Gen Singh had been delivered by speed post, ordinary mail, email, telephone or any other source until the meeting started on Thursday.
The ruling NC MLCs Mr Rana, Khalid Najeeb Suharwardy and Minister Ajay Sadhotra had moved the motion of the breach of privilege of the members of the House in November, days after Gen Singh was reported to have said in a television interview that the J&K ministers had been recipients of the central agencies' secret funds since 1947.
