V.P. Malik upset with Bhagwat's writing

V.P. Malik upset with Bhagwat's writing
GAURAV C. SAWANT

NEW DELHI, FEB 17: Former chief of the army staff General Ved Prakash Malik today said he felt very sad reading Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat, former chief of naval staff ``indulge in this kind of writing about him''.

``I do not want to join issues but it is bad that he (Bhagwat) indulged in this kind of writing. There is no truth in the comments made by him,'' Malik told The Indian Express.

``I was as aghast as anyone else when he (Bhagwat) was made to leave the service. Vishnu Bhagwat knows it well. As far as his comments on my conspiring against him or anyone else are concerned, there is not an iota of truth in them,'' he added.

Bhagwat, who was dismissed as the CNS on December 30, 1998, wrote in his book that General Malik told Fernandes that Bhagwat was ``inciting him against Ajit Kumar''. Bhagwat said though Malik called then defence secretary Ajit Kumar ``slimy,'' in front of them, he sided with him and Defence Minister George Fernandes because he had his eyes on the proposed post of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). Malik said it was sad that Bhagwat should write untruths like this.

``The three services chiefs, including Vishnu Bhagwat himself and our predecessors, have been seeking reorganisation of the higher defence control structure. This is what was suggested by the Arun Singh committee in the early 90s and again by the Kargil Review Committee now,'' Malik said.

On Bhagwat alleging that Malik acted in a partisan manner for an extension and for CDS post, the former army chief said: ``His statements lack truth. These are only conjectures that I wanted to be the first CDS. The events are all before you and it has been amply proven by the events in the past two years.''

Malik said that several chiefs in the past have said that the existing system in the Ministry of Defence is not conducive for fighting wars. He said that as a principle, they had been calling for reorganisation of the higher defence establishment but none of it meant that he was angling for the post of CDS.