Political outrage over Army chief General VK Singh's leaked letter, parties demand action

New Delhi:  The chief of the Indian Army, General VK Singh, may have skidded past the point of no-return on his collision course with the government. A letter from him to the Prime Minister, warning that India's security is at risk, has been leaked to the media. Many political parties have hinted that he is responsible for the leak.

Opposition parties in Parliament demanded that the government take action against whoever is responsible, expressing as much concern over the leak of the letter as its contents. General Singh is currently on tour in Kashmir and will return to Delhi tomorrow.  
In his letter, dated March 12, General VK Singh asks the Prime Minister to "pass suitable directions to enhance the preparedness of the Army". The chief describes the state of artillery, air defence, and infantry as "alarming." He writes the Army's tanks are "devoid of critical ammunition to defeat enemy tanks" and air defence is "97% obsolete."

Many blame the Army chief for the leak, suggesting that this is his latest attempt to embarrass the Defence Ministry. A series of leaders from opposition parties, including Lalu Prasad Yadav, said the Army chief should be removed for breaching confidentiality and compromising institutional integrity. (Read: Some leaders ask for Army chief's removal - 10 big facts)

In Parliament, Defence Minister AK Antony described the letter as "top-secret." He said publishing "secret communication within government cannot serve our national security". Politicians like Lalu Prasad Yadav blamed the chief and asked for his immediate removal. "He is acting like someone who wants to stand for elections...remove him" said Lalu Prasad Yadav. Ram Gopal Yadav of the Samajwadi Party and Shivanand Tewari of the Janta Dal (United) agreed. Arun Jaitley of the BJP pointed out that alleged lapses in the procurement of equipment, as highlighted by the Army chief, should be addressed urgently, though privately. "Responsibility will have to be fixed and action be taken, irrespective of the position they may hold in the defence forces or the civilian administration. And that assurance must be given, and that is what we want," said the Left's Sitaram Yechury.

The details of the Army's weaknesses and its chasm with the government are now part of the imagery on display for Chinese President Hu Jintao, who is in Delhi for the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) summit that begins tomorrow. On Monday, the Army chief revealed that he had been offered a bribe of 14 crores to clear sub-standard trucks in 2010. The Defence Minister retorted yesterday that he had asked the chief to take action against the retired defence officer who offered him the kickback, but the Army chief had refused. (Read: Rs. 14 crore bribe offered to Army chief recorded on tape: Sources) General Singh will meet most likely with the CBI tomorrow to discuss the kickback.

Former Army chief Shankar Roy Chowdhury said that the government has been alerted repeatedly to the exigent need to upgrade the Army's resources. "This is not a new thing...it is occupying media space because of the leaks," he said. "Pakistan must be laughing... rest assured Pakistan knows about it, China knows about it," he added.

The Army chief is set to retire at the end of May. Many believe that this week's developments suggest he is hungry for revenge before he exits office. (Read: Months of acrimony for army chief and the government) 

For most of last year, the minister and the Army chief fought a long battle over General Singh's age. The government refused to accept that General Singh was born in 1951 and not 1950.  Records with the Army show both years, but the government said that documents used to establish his seniority and promotions declared 1950 as his year of birth and could not be amended. The Army chief took the unprecedented action of taking the government to court. But he dropped his petition after Supreme Court judges indicated they were unlikely to accept his arguments.

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Karnataka porn scandal: Action against only one of three former ministers, says committee

Bangalore:  Of the trio of former ministers accused of watching porn in the Karnataka Assembly, two have reason to exhale. A committee, set up by the Assembly, has found there is evidence to merit action against only one of them - Lakshman S Savadi.

On February 7, three ministers were seen watching porn on a cellphone. The incident was captured by the camera crew of a private TV channel that was covering the proceedings in the Assembly that day.

The trio - Lakshman S Savadi, CC Patil and J Krishna Palemar - were forced to resign. All three said they were innocent and were watching a news report on an incident of rape. The phone, it would later turn out, belonged to Mr Palemar.

A committee comprising seven MLAs was set up to investigate the incident. The opposition MLAs refused to participate in the inquiry, because they said that the former ministers should be expelled as MLAs. So the former ministers were questioned only by four members of their own party.

During the probe, it also emerged that over a dozen other MLAs may have also been viewing porn inside the Assembly. But ten of them were not in the terms of reference for the panel that submitted its report today.

The committee's report has been handed over to the speaker, KG Bopaiah.

The fact that two of the three men allegedly involved will be excused comes as huge relief to the BJP which is currently dealing with a revolt in its Karnataka branch. Former chief minister BS Yeddyurapa wants to return to office. He has 67 MLAs - more than half of the party's elected representatives - on his side.

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Kunal Khemu turns action hero for Mahadkar's next

By Hindustan Times

Actor Kunal Khemu, who has pulled off serious as well as comedy roles, will now be seen in a hardcore action movie. After working with Kunal in his directorial debut Blood Money, Vishal Mahadkar has roped in the actor for his next untitled film. "I am doing a hardcore action thriller with Kunal Khemu. I always wanted to do an action film. Something I really enjoy watching, this is completely my space. Somewhere it is Kunal's space as well I think we are going to make a kick ass film as a team," Mahadkar told IANS.

Releasing March 30, Blood Money has been produced by Vishesh Films and Mahadkar's next ios also coming from the same banner.

"No discussion on the title as of now. The script is being written and when the script is ready we can decide whether to give it a title that has a franchise or not. But, as off now it's not a sequel. I like to cast only when my script is written. It's too early to talk about other characters," said Mahadkar.

The director promises to show some street brawls in the film.

"I just enjoy action films. You will see lot of fights, lot of street brawls but not like any explosions and that kind of action. I have little bit of action in Blood Money as well. That will be a fun space for me to explore," said the director.

Mahadkar believes Kunal is fit and need not work on his body.

"He is already super fit. Kunal agreed on the principle that character is going to be written keeping him in mind. We will be pushing him on the sets to run around and do all the crazy things to pull off a great action film," said the director

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Shahid Kapoor set for rugged action!

By Hindustan Times

He has largely been known as the chocolate boy in Bollywood. But Shahid Kapoor is set to undergo a transformation for UTV’s Hindi remake of the Tamil action venture, Vettai. Released this January, The Arya-R Madhavan starrer was produced by the same banner. Shahid is likely to play the part
originally portrayed by Arya.

When contacted, Siddharth Roy Kapoor, UTV Motion Pictures’ CEO confirms: “Yes, we are in advanced discussions with Shahid, but till we make a formal announcement, I wouldn’t like to say much about the cast.” N Lingusamy will apparently direct the Hindi remake too, while Madhavan may also reprise his role.

Vettai revolves around two brothers — the younger one played by Arya, and the older, by Madhavan. While the latter is sensitive to violence, Arya is a jobless rogue. After being beaten up by goons, Madhavan becomes stronger, thanks to the training he receives from his younger brother. The two then get back at two goons and protect their family.

“Vettai is essentially an action film, but like other south Indian films, it also has a dose of masala entertainment including humour, stunts, dance, songs and romance. But in terms of genre, it’s an action – rough and rugged kind – film,” says Kapoor, adding that the production house has had a “fantastic start” to 2012. “The last few months have been very good for us.

Starting with Vettai, our big release on Pongal, we have had a great run with Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu, Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya, and now, Paan Singh Tomar,” he says, adding, “Everything boils down to making the right creative choices. Thankfully, we’ve managed to do it.”

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