NEW DELHI, March 29 � The war of attrition between the Army Chief and the Government showed no signs of abating today with Gen VK Singh describing as �high treason� the leak of his letter on defence preparedness and the Government promising that those responsible would be given �maximum punishment�.
As Gen Singh�s March 12 letter to Prime Minister in which he had complained about lack of defence preparedness continued to generate controversy, he issued a strongly worded statement in which he said the source of leak should be dealt with �ruthlessly�.
In a brief statement released by the Army Headquarters, Gen Singh, who is currently in Jammu and Kashmir, said his official communication with the Prime Minister and Defence Minister is �privileged� communication.
�The leakage of the letter should be treated as high treason. Cynical approach to tarnish my reputation should stop. Sources of the leakage should be found and dealt with ruthlessly,� said Singh, who is due to retire on May 31.
At a press conference in Delhi, Defence Minister AK Antony vowed to take the �strongest action� under laws against those responsible for the leak of Gen Singh�s letter to the Prime Minister.
