Omar takes up V K Singh's allegations with Centre, says statement has maligned politicians

Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said accusations levelled by former army chief General V.K. Singh have to be investigated, and added that these have had a negative impact on the image of all political parties, especially those in his state.

"As far as what General V.K. Singh has said, both, my government, as well as my party, have stated our concerns about what he has had to say. I believe these accusations cannot be dismissed out of hand. They require further investigation," Abdullah said.

"This matter is being taken up formally by me with the Government of India for further action. I don't think it is appropriate for me to say anything beyond that, other than the fact that this effort to vilify and villainise all mainstream political parties is extremely unfortunate," he added.

The Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister further defended the political parties of his state, and said the UPA-led Central Government needs to thoroughly investigate the allegations and share them with the public so that confidence is restored in the people.

"Most of us have no financial dealings whatsoever with the army. But, these sorts of statements and accusations only cause us great difficulty here. In this one statement of his, the General has created untold problems for the image of mainstream political parties-particularly, those operating in the Kashmir Valley," he said.

"I think the Government of India needs to come clean on this, because, today all mainstream politicians are being looked at with suspicion, and, I think that is extremely unfair," he added.

Earlier, former chief of army staff General V. K. Singh disclosed that money from a secret army fund was given to some ministers in the Government of Jammu and Kashmir, but only for social schemes.

General Singh told television channels, including CNN-IBN and Times Now, that the money was given as part of Operation Sadbhavna schemes carried out by the army.

He said it was given to only to stabilise areas affected by terror, as well as the areas across the border.

General Singh had earlier stated that certain ministers in the Jammu and Kashmir Cabinet were given these amounts from time to time, which prompted the state government and the Union Home Ministry to ask him on Tuesday to name the ministers who were paid the money.

Meanwhile, General Singh has filed an RTI application seeking a copy of the army probe report, which reportedly questions the functioning of a unit set up by him for human intelligence gathering.