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BEML chief questions General V K Singh's integrity : North, News - India Today

A day after General V K Singh retired, the state-run Bharat Earth Movers Ltd (BEML), which is facing various corruption-related allegations, said it would file a defamation suit against the former Army chief unless he apologises for his remarks on the Tatra truck deal.

Recently, Singh had accused BEML of supplying sub-standard Tatra trucks to the India Army at exorbitant prices.

"We have decided to file a defamatory suit against General V.K. Singh for making derogatory remarks about the quality of Tatra trucks we supplied to the Army and making false claims on its price," BEML Chairman and Managing Director V.R.S. Natarajan said in Bangalore on Friday in his first-ever interaction with the media after a spate of charges were levelled against the PSU.

Singh had also alleged that the BEML had offered Rs.14 crore as bribe to clear the 600 Tatra Truck deal with the Indian Army. Natarajan dismissed the allegation as baseless.

"We emphatically refute all the charges made by the 'great' general against the company and the Tatra trucks the company had been supplying to the army since 1986. At no point of time the army had earlier complained about the quality of the trucks and their operational functions," Natarajan contended.

The BEML chief accused Singh of making "false, motivated and damaging" statements against the PSU as he neared retirement. "The supply of Tatra trucks was in conformity with the procedures laid down by the Ministry of Defence. As a state-run enterprise, we have nothing to do with the allegations Singh made about the bribe offer or attempts by a third-party to influence the army in purchasing 600 more trucks," he maintained.

Natarajan tried to defend himself from the plethora of allegations made against him. Regarding the alleged discrepancies in allotment of highly-priced residential plots in Bangalore by the BEML Housing Cooperative Society, he contended that the PSU had no control over the society because it was under his purview.

He did not respond to the statement given to the CBI by a former president of the BEML Housing Cooperative Society that it allotted plots to several important personalities at the behest of Natarajan.

The BEML CMD refused to entertain questions relating to the CBI raid on his residence and offices in connection with the alleged irregularities in engaging the services of a consultancy firm to implement an Enterprises Resources Planning (ERP) project in the PSU.

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Less than a week after government-owned Bharat Earth Movers Ltd chief V R S Natarajan served a legal notice for filing a defamation suit against General(retd) V K Singh, the Ministry of Defence today denied having given permission to the BEML chief to slap the notice on the former Army chief a day after his retirement on May 31.

''MoD has categorically denied giving permission to the CMD, BEML Shri VRS Natarajan to serve a legal notice for filing a defamation suit against General (Retd) VK Singh,'' the Ministry said in a statement.

''The Ministry has asked Shri Natarajan to explain as to why he had made such a statement to the media.''

General Singh had promptly rejected on June 1 the demand for an apology made by Natarajan on allegations of bribe in the Tatra truck deal.

At press conference in Bangalore on June 1, BEML Chairman and Managing Director had said that the company has slapped a legal notice on General Singh demanding an apology for his 'false and motivated' allegations against it on the Tatra truck issue.

''Legal notice has been issued today. If he does not apologise, we may file a defamation suit against Gen V K Singh,'' Natarajan had told reporters.

''Apology for what, I would like to ask Natarajan that. I have not alleged anything, I have just stated some facts, General Singh said reacting to Natarajan's demand.

''The issue is with the CBI, which is investigating. I am quite sure that he (Natarajan) is motivated to file all kinds of things against me. What are the facts are known to him and now to the CBI. Let us proceed with the investigation, I am quite sure we will find what the truth is,'' General Singh had told the media.

General Singh, while in service, had alleged that he was offered a Rs 14 crore bribe by a former Army officer to clear supply of a tranche of 600 Tatra trucks into which the CBI is investigating.