KL Report
SRINAGAR
Rejecting General V-K Singh’s remark that since 1947 Army is regularly paying money to Jammu and Kashmir ministers and other politicians, former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Lt General S K Sinha Saturday said that “these allegations are mere fabrication”.
“Allegations against Army are baseless as nobody knows Kashmir more than me. I am aware of everything that took place in Jammu and Kashmir since 1943. I have served in Kashmir from the beginning when Indian Army entered there to fight Pakistani rebels. Moreover I have been a Governor of Jammu and Kashmir from 2003 to 2008. No funds were ever provided by the Army to any politicians so the allegation is a sheer nonsense,” Sinha told a local news agency, KNS over phone from New Delhi.
He said the Army has always remained apolitical and has nothing to do with the toppling of any government. “This remark is devastating as it has tarnished the image of Army. Before leveling such allegations against Army, V-K Singh should have known that the funds provided to the Army undergo a proper pre and post audit. So it is incorrect that Army bribes the politicians of Jammu and Kashmir,” the former Governor added.
Claiming that he has been closely associated with the Kashmir related developments, Sinha said that he is a witness to the formation of ceasefire line and ceasefire resolution which was passed in United Nations conference in 1949 when the war between India and Pakistan was over. “So I know the role of Army. It never crossed the limits which have been given to it. It is a disciplined force with a clean record of having never ever dabbled in the politics,” he added.
He said, “V-K Sing’s remarks will have a devastating effect not only in Kashmir but internationally on the image of the army.”
When asked about the National Conference leader Mustafa Kamal’s statements against Army, Sinha said, “I never pay heed to his statements and his statements are better known to him only.” However, the former governor hurriedly added that Omar Abdullah is a mature politician.
