Army Chief Gen. V.K. Singh on Thursday admitted that the Adarsh land scam in Mumbai had done “serious damage to the reputation” of the Army and added that all Armymen will be feeling a “sense of shame and sense of pain” over the scam. Several retired and serving senior Army officers are among those who were allotted flats in the Adarsh Housing Society. The comments were made by the Army Chief in an interview to a TV channel. This came on a day when former Army chief Gen. (retd.) Deepak Kapoor — who is one of the flat allottees —— met defence minister A.K. Antony in the evening to present his version of events on allegations regarding his property and assets. Sources said Gen. Kapoor had denied any wrong-doing.
In fact, the Army may soon institute a Court of Inquiry into the Adarsh allotment case in which even some of the former senior Army officers including Gen. Kapoor may be questioned.
Gen. Singh said that “action would be taken by the Army as per the procedures”.
“I’m extremely saddened. As an institution, we have taken a beating. Any incident which affects our hierarchy affects the Army. This is a sad day. Our men also see the news on television,” Gen. Singh said.
The worry of the Army is that the scandal will lower the esteem that soldiers have for their senior officers.
“When people look at it —— and we have martyrs everyday — people are going to say anyone asking for something for martyrs is looking for personal gains,” the Army Chief lamented, adding that the Adarsh scam would have “great psychological impact” on the force.
In an obvious reference to allegations against former Army Chiefs in the Adarsh controversy, the Army Chief further said the Adarsh scam had “cast a stain on the office of the Army Chief”. He said, “The (Army) Chief’s office is an institution. It is revered and considered beyond any such things.”
He also admitted to another TV channel that it was no coincidence that senior Army officers posted earlier in Mumbai were among the Adarsh flat allottees and said, “We are finding out who ordered what.”
In an obvious indication of how he felt, Gen. Singh made it clear that “any right-thinking person (caught in the Adarsh controversy) will give up his flats”.
When asked a direct question about his predecessor Gen. Kapoor, the Army Chief said, “I leave it to the individual conscience to take suitable action so that the blot against their name and the Army can be taken care of.”