<p>Asking the media not to report the issue "on the basis of documents leaked selectively by the aggrieved party", Former Director General, Assam Rifles Lt Gen K S Yadava said the matter should be solved through proper procedure by people with technical and legal expertise.<br /><br />"I accept that a mistake was committed and it could not get rectified over the years. But I would request you all to let the procedure take its course to solve this problem. Let all the people with technical and legal knowledge decide what is correct," Yadava said.<br /><br />The retired Lt Gen who also served in the Military Secretary branch of the Army and was addressing the press here in his personal capacity as an ex-serviceman, also briefed the reporters about the procedure followed by the Army to determine the age of a member of its staff.<br /><br />"Both Adjutant General and Military Secretary Branch deals with age of a soldier. But authority to determine, check and verify a person's age lies with the AG's branch," he said.<br /><br />"In General V K Singh's case all his service records with AG branch and his Identity card say that his Date of Birth (DOB) is 1951. But MS Branch has followed the DOB mentioned in his UPSC form that is 1951," said Yadava.<br /><br />On the documents available with media persons regarding Gen Singh's DOB, he said, "The person who leaks out confidential matters is a criminal and should be dealt with as such, but the person who makes use of that confidential note is equally at fault."<br /><br />The Army chief's date of birth varies in records of the Adjutant General's and Military Secretary's branches. The AG branch, the official record keeper for salary and pension, has May 10, 1951 as Singh's date of birth but the Military Secretary's (MS) branch, in charge of promotions and postings, records his date of birth as May 10, 1950.<br /><br />Gen Singh is supposed to retire on June 1, 2012 but if his date of birth as per AG branch records is accepted, he may get an extension of around one year in office. As per rules, an Army Chief can serve for three years or up to the age of 62, whichever is earlier.</p>
<p>Asking the media not to report the issue "on the basis of documents leaked selectively by the aggrieved party", Former Director General, Assam Rifles Lt Gen K S Yadava said the matter should be solved through proper procedure by people with technical and legal expertise.<br /><br />"I accept that a mistake was committed and it could not get rectified over the years. But I would request you all to let the procedure take its course to solve this problem. Let all the people with technical and legal knowledge decide what is correct," Yadava said.<br /><br />The retired Lt Gen who also served in the Military Secretary branch of the Army and was addressing the press here in his personal capacity as an ex-serviceman, also briefed the reporters about the procedure followed by the Army to determine the age of a member of its staff.<br /><br />"Both Adjutant General and Military Secretary Branch deals with age of a soldier. But authority to determine, check and verify a person's age lies with the AG's branch," he said.<br /><br />"In General V K Singh's case all his service records with AG branch and his Identity card say that his Date of Birth (DOB) is 1951. But MS Branch has followed the DOB mentioned in his UPSC form that is 1951," said Yadava.<br /><br />On the documents available with media persons regarding Gen Singh's DOB, he said, "The person who leaks out confidential matters is a criminal and should be dealt with as such, but the person who makes use of that confidential note is equally at fault."<br /><br />The Army chief's date of birth varies in records of the Adjutant General's and Military Secretary's branches. The AG branch, the official record keeper for salary and pension, has May 10, 1951 as Singh's date of birth but the Military Secretary's (MS) branch, in charge of promotions and postings, records his date of birth as May 10, 1950.<br /><br />Gen Singh is supposed to retire on June 1, 2012 but if his date of birth as per AG branch records is accepted, he may get an extension of around one year in office. As per rules, an Army Chief can serve for three years or up to the age of 62, whichever is earlier.</p>