Former Indian Army chief General (retd.) V.K. Singh has said the army will never carry out a coup; it will only defend the nation.
In an interview to India TV news channel, he blamed some bureaucrats and army officers for “planting”, what he called, wrong information in the media about the movement of two units of the army near Delhi in January last year.
“Today, I can reveal that some bureaucrats and some army officers planted this baseless news. These two units were part of routine mobilisation, and if you remember, there were some developments in Maldives six-seven days later. These units were meant to go there”, he said.
Asked what could be the motive behind planting such news, he said: “It’s very clear. A man stands up against the government (referring to a row over his date of birth) and you want to defame him. You want to coerce him. That could be the only motive”.