Govt vetting report on ex-Gen VK Singh's snoop unit

The media report claiming that former army chief VK Singh had set up a special unit in the army to topple the Jammu and Kashmir government, has sparked sharp reactions across socio-political circles.

The media report claiming that former army chief VK Singh had set up a special unit in the army to topple the Jammu and Kashmir government, has sparked sharp reactions across socio-political circles.

Earlier, General Singh was in national news over his date of birth controversy. He joined the BJP soon after he retired from the Indian Army last year.

The report said that the army had asked the defence ministry to get Singh's special unit, named technical services division (TSD), probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

General Singh was allegedly using the division's services to block general Bikram Singh's promotion, the report claimed.

National Conference leader Mustafa Kamal on Friday said the former army chief's action was an attack on the democratic credentials.

Kamal alleged that general VK Singh's mindset was communal and that was why he had opted to join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

"He left office and immediately joined the BJP, obviously his mindset was communal," he added.

Former IPS officer Kiran Bedi has questioned the timing of the report. "The timing of the news concerning general VK Singh is intriguing! It is: Puncture the messenger, somehow!" Bedi tweeted.

"When VK Singh was at the helm of affairs, speaking up for integrity, he was a hero! Now that he has spoken as an insider, efforts will be to shoot him down," she added.

The technical services division's existence had come to light in March last year when it was alleged that the unit had tapped the phones of the defence ministry officials at the height of the controversy over the then Army chief's date of birth.

The division was reporting directly to general VK Singh and it was alleged that the unit might have snooped into the conversations of people even outside the defence ministry using its off-the-air interceptor equipment.

(With inputs from Agencies)