Who is Lt Gen Tejinder Singh?

In the General Vs General war ensued after the stunning revelations made by the Army Chief General VK Singh, Lt Gen (retd) Tejinder Singh has come to the limelight but it is not the first time the senior officer is courting controversy.

Lt Gen Tejinder Singh has come under scanner for allegedly trying to pay kick backs to none other than the Army Chief to get clear a defence deal  for heavy duty Tatra trucks. The officer, who retired as the head of the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) in 2010 has been indicted by the Army Court of Inquiry in the Adarsh Society Scam.

Adarsh Society Scam, that saw service chiefs and other senior officers illegally getting allotment in this sky scraper in Mumbai built in the name of Kargil martyrs. Tejinder Singh had served as the General-Officer-in Commanding of the Bombay area and the construction of the Adarsh building continued unabated during his tenure. The scathing report by Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Adarsh scam says that Lt Gen Tejinder Singh was included in the list of allotees of flats in the building in 2008 but his name did not appear in the final list prepared in 2010.

He later moved on to command a Division in Gujarat and then commanded a Corps before moving in as the Director General DIA. His name cropped up after an anonymous complaint insinuating the Army Chief General VK Singh of deploying vehicle mounted with interceptors to eavesdrop the conversation of politicians and bureaucrats at the peak of the age controversy.

The Army responded with an unprecedented statement that named him of orchestrating the “malicious and salacious” campaign against the force. It went ahead and said that the Lt Gen was in the dock for allegedly purchasing the same interceptors mounted vehicles without sanction by the technically empowered committee.

“This officer has also been an allottee in Adarsh Housing Society in Mumbai and has also offered bribe on behalf of Tatra and Vectra Limited, which supplies vehicles to BEML,” the written statement issued by Army Headquarters said.