Women Air Force officers get relief as Delhi High Court pauses their discharge
The Delhi High Court on Monday paused the discharge of a group of women Indian Air Force (IAF) Short Service Commission (SSC) officers from service
The Delhi High Court on Monday paused the discharge of a group of women Indian Air Force (IAF) Short Service Commission (SSC) officers from service while their petitions challenging the denial of Permanent Commission (PC) remain pending. Hearing the matter, the High Court directed that the officers continue in service until their plea is taken up by the roster bench, which is scheduled to hear the case on July 1. Read Full Story The women officers have challenged the Air Force's decision denying them Permanent Commission, alleging that their release orders were issued despite interim protection granted by the Supreme Court.
'AIR FORCE ACTED IN HASTE' During the hearing, counsel for the petitioners argued that the Air Force acted in haste by issuing discharge orders while both the Delhi High Court and the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) were on holiday. The counsel alleged that the release orders, issued on June 3, were passed before the officers' applications could be heard by the AFT. When the High Court questioned why the petitioners had approached it at this stage, the counsel submitted that the officers had first moved the AFT after the Supreme Court's interim order.
However, with the tribunal not hearing the matter before the release orders were issued, they were left with no option but to seek relief from the High Court. The petitioners contended that the Supreme Court had earlier protected them from being discharged while permitting them to pursue appropriate legal remedies before the AFT or the High Court. According to the counsel, although the Supreme Court's final judgment allowed officers whose applications for Permanent Commission were rejected in 2023 and 2024 to seek legal recourse, it also made it clear that the interim protection against their discharge would continue while such proceedings remained pending.
The petitioners further argued that they belonged to a separate category from officers whose Permanent Commission applications had been rejected in 2021. One of the officers submitted that despite being commissioned in 2013, she was considered for Permanent Commission only in 2023 before being denied. The plea also questioned aspects of the Air Force's 2019 human resource policy governing the grant of Permanent Commission to women SSC officers. Ends
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