General VK Singh, who took over the reins of the Army 26 months ago with an image of an anti-corruption crusader, retires as Army chief today bringing to an end a controversial tenure that was marred by rows over his age and fissures among the military brass.
62-year-old Singh,
who hung up his boots after 42 years of service, will be succeeded by Eastern Army commander Gen Bikram Singh, who will have a tenure of two years and three months.
Gen VK Singh, who took over as the Army chief on March 31, 2010 with an image of an honest, firm and an upright officer, leaves behind a legacy of controversies starting from a row regarding his age.
Opinions were divided on the tenure among former top officials of armed forces with some hailing him and others criticising him.
Even as controversies clouded the last few months of his tenure as the head of the 1.3 million-strong force, he had laid the roadmap for transformation of the army into a lean and mean fighting unit.
He had also flagged concerns over the shortage of arms and ammunition and impressed on government the urgent need for immediate steps to shore up purchases.
A native of Bapora village in Rohtak district of Haryana, Gen VK Singh's tenure saw the unprecedented step of an Army chief dragging the government to court seeking a change of date of birth in official records that would have given him an extra ten months in service.
Gen VK Singh retires today - Hindustan Times
Not sure who is at fault in all the controversies during his tenure .. But he did made army look bad .. All the allegations of bribe etc were reported only when he was abt to retire ..
I am 100% sure tht his bribe allegation r correct ..and there is corruption in army too .. But he brought tht up only once his purpose was served ..
Armed forces equipments r outdated .. There is no doubt abt it .. But y bring tht issue to media only weeks before his retirement and once SC didn't allowed his extension?
He may have done tht for some good reason .. But for a common man it looked like he was seeking revenge against the govt at the cost of Army's reputation ..
I hope Bikram singh brings some sanity to the situation ..
62-year-old Singh,
who hung up his boots after 42 years of service, will be succeeded by Eastern Army commander Gen Bikram Singh, who will have a tenure of two years and three months.
Gen VK Singh, who took over as the Army chief on March 31, 2010 with an image of an honest, firm and an upright officer, leaves behind a legacy of controversies starting from a row regarding his age.
Opinions were divided on the tenure among former top officials of armed forces with some hailing him and others criticising him.
Even as controversies clouded the last few months of his tenure as the head of the 1.3 million-strong force, he had laid the roadmap for transformation of the army into a lean and mean fighting unit.
He had also flagged concerns over the shortage of arms and ammunition and impressed on government the urgent need for immediate steps to shore up purchases.
A native of Bapora village in Rohtak district of Haryana, Gen VK Singh's tenure saw the unprecedented step of an Army chief dragging the government to court seeking a change of date of birth in official records that would have given him an extra ten months in service.
Gen VK Singh retires today - Hindustan Times
Not sure who is at fault in all the controversies during his tenure .. But he did made army look bad .. All the allegations of bribe etc were reported only when he was abt to retire ..
I am 100% sure tht his bribe allegation r correct ..and there is corruption in army too .. But he brought tht up only once his purpose was served ..
Armed forces equipments r outdated .. There is no doubt abt it .. But y bring tht issue to media only weeks before his retirement and once SC didn't allowed his extension?
He may have done tht for some good reason .. But for a common man it looked like he was seeking revenge against the govt at the cost of Army's reputation ..
I hope Bikram singh brings some sanity to the situation ..