Lieutenant General Dhiraj Seth has been appointed as the next Chief of the Army Staff, succeeding General Upendra Dwivedi on June 30th, and during this transition, a coordinated disinformation campaign has targeted him with false accusations, specifically linking him to a 21-year-old man named Aryan Verma who was arrested for impersonating an army brigadier. Fact-checkers have debunked these claims, confirming that Verma's family has disassociated themselves from any relation to Lieutenant General Seth, who comes from a prominent military family himself and has had an extensive career commanding various formations over nearly 40 years.

Lieutenant General Dhiraj Seth has been appointed as the next Chief of the Army Staff, succeeding General Upendra Dwivedi on June 30th, and during this transition, a coordinated disinformation campaign has targeted him with false accusations, specifically linking him to a 21-year-old man named Aryan Verma who was arrested for impersonating an army brigadier. Fact-checkers have debunked these claims, confirming that Verma's family has disassociated themselves from any relation to Lieutenant General Seth, who comes from a prominent military family himself and has had an extensive career commanding various formations over nearly 40 years.

Lieutenant General Dhiraj Seth has been appointed as the next Chief of the Army Staff, succeeding General Upendra Dwivedi on June 30th, and during this transition, a coordinated disinformation campaign has targeted him with false accusations, specifically linking him to a 21-year-old man named Aryan Verma who was arrested for impersonating an army brigadier. Fact-checkers have debunked these claims, confirming that Verma's family has disassociated themselves from any relation to Lieutenant General Seth, who comes from a prominent military family himself and has had an extensive career commanding various formations over nearly 40 years.

Lt General Dhiraj Seth, who is currently serving as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS), has been selected to become the country's next Chief of the Army Staff. He will be taking over from General Upendra Dwivedi on June 30.

Meanwhile, certain fake-news peddlers have been targeting the decorated military officer by spreading multiple baseless accusations against him. One such viral post claimed that the youth who was recently arrested for posing as a brigadier is a nephew of Lt General Dhiraj Seth.

"Biggest loss to my Indian Army... The fake brigadier who was recently arrested is reportedly the nephew of Vice Chief of Staff Dhiraj Seth. According to investigators, the fake brigadier has stated that he passed some sensitive military secrets to individuals abroad," one such viral post said.

For the unversed, a 21-year-old man identified as Aryan Verma posed as a Brigadier in the Indian Army for several weeks before he was caught in an operation at the Shaheed Sangrahalaya “Martyrs' Museum” in Uttar Pradesh's Shahjahanpur Cantonment area.

Verma had been moving around the city in a private Tata Harrier SUV fitted with a brigadier’s one-star plate and the Army headquarters flag. He was also accompanied by two hired bouncers, whom he reportedly introduced as National Security Guard commandos. He, meanwhile, posed as a serving senior officer in full military uniform.

However, fact-checkers debunked the claims connecting the youth to the VCOAS. The son of Lieutenant General Krishna Mohan Seth, a retired three-star general, Lt General Dhiraj Seth was born into a military family with ancestral roots in Allahabad (now Prayagraj).

According to media reports, Aryan Verma's family themselves have confirmed that they are not related to the Seths in any manner.

Lt General Dhiraj Seth set to take charge

“The Government has appointed Lieutenant General Dhiraj Seth, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, presently serving as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff, as the next Chief of the Army Staff with effect from the afternoon of June 30, 2026. The present Chief of the Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi, PVSM, AVSM retires from service the same day,” a statement from the defence ministry said.

Over a career spanning a period of nearly 40 years, the general officer has commanded at every level in diverse operational environments. His command assignments include an Armoured Regiment in the Desert Sector, an Armoured Brigade in the Western Theatre, and a Counter-Insurgency Force in Jammu & Kashmir. As a Lieutenant General, he commanded the Sudarshan Chakra Corps, one of the Indian Army's premier strike formations.

TAGS