In a damning indictment, attorney general Goolam Vahanvati has raised serious doubts on the version of events of Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen. V.K. Singh regarding the controversial UPSC form that has May 10, 1950, as the General’s date of birth (DoB). While the government has continued to maintain May 10, 1950, as Gen. Singh’s DoB, the Army chief has been contending that May 10, 1951, is his DoB. The Army chief’s petition is expected to be heard by the Supreme Court on February 3.
In his legal opinion — on the basis of which the government rejected the statutory complaint of the Army chief —the attorney general said, “One of the primary and basic documents on the basis of which the DoB was taken as May 10, 1950, was the UPSC application form sent by the complainant himself. This is now sought to be explained away on the ground that it was filled in ‘inadvertently’. Earlier, there was a suggestion that the admission form was filled in by a teacher of the school where the complainant (Gen. Singh) was studying.”
Mr Vahanvati has also referred to a purported email allegedly written by the teacher claiming responsibility for the error in the form. But this clearly failed to impress Mr Vahanvati.
The attorney general further noted, “Such a stand would have got the complainant into obvious difficulties because the application form clearly stated that it had to be filled in and signed by the applicant himself. Perhaps this is why it is now stated that the application form was filled in ‘inadvertently’. This explanation cannot be accepted particularly when the application contained a declaration that the ‘statements made in the application are true to the best of my knowledge and belief’.”
However, Gen. Singh, in his petition, has contended, “One fails to understand, as to why such importance is being given to an inadvertent mistake while filling up the UPSC form ...”