Review permanent commission denial to woman Navy officer: SC

The Supreme Court on Wednesday held that the Indian Navy’s denial of permanent commission (PC) to a female short service commission (SSC) officer it considered meritorious in 2020 and 2024 was an error and ordered a fresh Selection Board to be formed to reconsider her case.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant said that despite the top court’s judgment in Union of India v Lieutenant Commander Annie Nagaraja (March 2020), opening PC to female SSC officers in the Navy and reiterated again in February 2024 for Commander Seema Chaudhary, the Naval Selection Board in April 2024 refused to grant PC to Chaudhary, who was forced to file a contempt plea.

Deciding the contempt plea against the Union defence secretary, the bench, also comprising justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana, said, “On perusal of the annual confidential reports (ACR) of the officer and also the reasons assigned, we are of the opinion that the Selection Board fell in error on two counts – the board applied ACRs of 2015 to 2021 where there was no recommendation for grant of PC and secondly, holding the officer to not have the requisite grading for grant of PC”. The court noted that ACRs talked of the petitioner’s “highly satisfactory performance”. She was commissioned in August 2007 in the Judge Advocate General (JAG) branch of the Navy. In 2008, the Navy brought a policy denying PC to female SSC officers. In 2009, she was promoted as a Lieutenant, and in 2012 as a Lieutenant Commander.

“We fail to understand that if an officer is considered eligible for promotion based on the same grading, why it is not considered for grant of PC,” it said.

The Navy, along with the Centre, was represented by Attorney General R Venkataramani, who said that an exception cannot be made for one officer as it can be treated as a precedent.

Appearing for Chaudhary, advocate Ninad Laud pointed out that in the Annie Nagaraja judgment, she was among the petitioners on whose plea the 2008 policy was struck down. Despite this, while considering her case, the Navy cited lack of vacancies.

Even in the February 2024 judgment where a review petition filed by her came to be decided in her favour, the court had held, “We accordingly order and direct that in the peculiar facts and circumstances of this case, the case of the petitioner for the grant of PC shall be considered afresh by reconvening a Selection Board. The Selection Board shall consider the case of the petitioner on a stand alone basis since it is common ground that she was the only serving JAG Branch officer of the 2007 batch whose case for the grant of PC was required to be considered.”

While passing the order on Wednesday, the bench noted how the officer was made to pursue her remedy by approaching the top court and even the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) on one occasion.

In her contempt plea, Chaudhary said, “The PC rejection letter of April 2024 not only establishes the various grounds of systemic gender bias and intentional discrimination raised by the petitioner extensively in the underlying appeal and review petition, but it also amounts to contempt of this court as the directions contained in February 26, 2024 judgment have been brazenly ignored, both in letter and spirit.”