Antony orders probe into army chief's allegation

"It is a serious allegation, I have already taken action," Antony told reporters outside parliament. But he refused to say what action had been taken and pointed out that parliament session was on.

Defence ministry spokesperson Sitanshu Kar told IANS here that the minister gave the orders after seeing reports of the army chief's claim in this regard.

The army chief told The Hindu Monday that a lobbyist offered him a bribe of Rs.14 crore to have a tranche of 600 substandard vehicles cleared for purchase.

"Just imagine, these men had the gumption to walk up to me and tell me that if I cleared the tranche, he would give me Rs.14 crore. He was offering a bribe to me," the army chief said.

The army chief also added that the defence minister was apprised of the matter.