Tejinder Singh withdraws SC plea against army chief

Retired Lieutenant-General Tejinder Singh withdrew his petition against army chief General VK Singh from the Supreme Court on Thursday, stating that he would move an appropriate forum instead.

Retired Lieutenant-General Tejinder Singh withdrew his petition against army chief General VK Singh from the Supreme Court on Thursday, stating that he would move an appropriate forum instead.

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In the petition, Tejinder had sought a CBI inquiry into the alleged misconduct of outgoing army chief General VK Singh.

Even before the bench of Justice P Sathasivam and Justice J Chelameswar could peruse the file to hear the matter, Tejinder's counsel senior advocate Rajeev Dhawan requested them to permit withdrawal of the petition. "Your lordships, please don't open the file at all. Kindly grant me permission to withdraw the petition and move the appropriate forum," Dhawan told the court, which granted his request.

Tejinder had moved the apex court on April 25, seeking a CBI inquiry into the alleged role of the army chief in the purported bugging of the defence minister's office, besides action against him for "misconduct". The retired lieutenant general had submitted a copy of the recorded conversation purportedly between him and the army chief, requesting the court to take it on record.

He had also accused Singh of professional misconduct by making "political statements" while holding the key post. He alleged that when the Centre had sought the army's help in Naxal-affected areas, Singh said the Maoist problem in the country was the government's own creation.

Tejinder moved the apex court even as he pursues a criminal defamation case against the army chief for allegedly levelling false allegations against him. Singh had accused Tejinder of offering him a bribe of R14 crore for purchasing Tatra trucks. Following this, the CBI initiated a probe and questioned the army chief.