IAF officer accuses senior of rape: How prevalent is sexual harassment in India’s armed forces?

A Wing Commander of the Indian Air Force (IAF) has been accused of rape by a woman flying officer. The Jammu and Kashmir Police has filed an FIR against the Wing Commander, who, along with the officer, is posted at the Air Force Station, Srinagar.

The menace of sexual harassment continues to haunt armed forces across the world. It is believed most of these cases go unreported.

Let’s take a look at the problem of sexual assault in the Indian armed forces.

IAF Wing Commander booked for rape

The woman officer has reportedly accused authorities at the Srinagar’s Air Force Station of subjecting her to “continuous harassment, sexual assault, and mental torture” over the last two years.

According to the FIR registered at the Budgam police station on September 8, the woman officer alleged she was forced to perform a sexual act on the Wing Commander after the New Year’s Party at the Air Force Station’s Officers’ Mess on December 31, 2023, reported Indian Express.

The flying officer has accused him of asking her to come to a room on the pretext of giving her a New Year gift. She alleged that she was sexually assaulted at around 2 am in the room.

“I repeatedly asked him to stop doing it and tried to resist it in all ways possible. Finally, I pushed him and ran away. He said that we would meet me again on Friday when his family leaves,” NDTV quoted the officer’s complaint.

She said she went “into a mental shock” and it took her a while to register her ordeal. “I was embarrassed and… broken to that extent … lacking courage to report. I can’t describe the mental agony, being an unmarried girl… treated in such a heinous manner… the incident and nightmares put me in the dilemma of whether to discuss or be quiet, finally I took a call and decided to fight,” the officer said in her complaint, as per Indian Express.

The officer said she approached two other women officers who guided her to file a complaint. She has accused senior IAF officers at the station of not taking her complaint seriously.

The flying officer said it took the station two months to assemble an Internal Committee (IC). “The bias of Station authorities to aid the sexual offender was very heartbreaking for me… Medical examination was not done till the time I insisted multiple times. It was done on the last day of the investigation by the Internal Committee,” she alleged in her complaint.

“IC (internal committee) did not do its job properly as directions had come from higher formation to keep the result as neutral. Everyone was aiding the sexual offender,” the officer alleged.

She said the committee closed its probe in May, saying it is “inconclusive that the incident happened or not” because of a “lack of eyewitness”. According to the officer, “till date no action has been taken on anyone and no intimation has been given to me”.

As per NDTV, she complained of “continuous mental harassment” and “social boycott”. “My personal communications have been constantly monitored unofficially. The individuals I speak with are harassed by the authorities.”

The officer said she was forced to approach the J&K Police after learning no action was being taken by the IAF authorities. The police have lodged an FIR under Section 376 (2) of the IPC, which deals with rape by a member of the armed forces deployed in an area by the central or state government.

The IAF has told NDTV that it is “fully cooperating with the local authorities”.

Recent cases

A Summary General Court Martial (SGCM) in Rajouri sentenced a jawan to five years and three months of rigorous imprisonment last December for molesting an officer’s daughter.

Last year, a woman Army officer accused a Brigadier of sexual harassment in Uttar Pradesh, prompting the army to launch an investigation, as per Indian Express.

Her complaint was referred to the Internal Complaints Committee under the provisions of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act of 2013, widely known as the PoSH Act.

In October last year, an Army jawan was found guilty by a General Court Martial (GCM) in Goa of sexually assaulting the 12-year-old daughter of a fellow soldier. He was sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment and dismissal from service. The jawan was charged with aggravated sexual assault on the child under Section 10 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO Act), reported Indian Express.

Last October, an Indian Army General Court Marital awarded a five-year jail term to a Major, dismissing him from service after he was found guilty of sexually harassing an 11-year-old girl. He was posted in the Delhi Cantonment at the time of the incident.

An IAF woman officer filed a complaint of rape against her colleague with the Coimbatore city police in 2021 due to dissatisfaction with the response of her superiors and after reportedly being subjected to the banned “two-finger” test.

In 2021, an IAF woman pilot moved the Jammu and Kashmir High Court, accusing her Flight Commander of sexual harassment.

A Major General was dismissed from service in 2019 in connection with a sexual harassment case. He was posted in the Northeast when the alleged incident took place in 2016.

In 2015, a female army officer, posted at the Alwar military station in Rajasthan, filed a sexual harassment complaint against the Commanding Officer of her unit.

A major problem

The prevalence of sexual harassment in the armed forces is a global issue.

In India, the data on sexual assault and harassment in the military is not in the public domain. Custodial rape by those in authority is also a problem.

According to National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figures, over 270 cases of rape in custody were recorded from 2017 to 2022. The perpetrators included police personnel, public servants, members of the armed forces and staff of jails.

Of the total 275 cases, Uttar Pradesh accounted for the highest number of cases at 92, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 43 cases.

According to a Force magazine article, the Indian army saw its first successful MeToo moment in 2007 when a woman army officer accused a Major General of sexual harassment. An Army Court dismissed him from service in 2008 after he was found guilty of molesting the officer under his command, in the first such case for the country’s armed forces.

Last July, the Madras High Court asked the Ministry of Defence to ensure the proper existence of the ICC in the defence services. There is no specific provision in the Army Act to deal with cases of sexual assault and harassment.

In the United States, President Joe Biden ordered a “90-Day Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault in the Military”. This panel was charged with conducting “an independent, impartial assessment” of the military’s treatment of sexual assault and harassment.

Lieutenant general HS Panag (retired) wrote for ThePrint that the Indian government must form an “empowered commission” like the one in the US and order reforms in the military on the basis of its suggestions.

“There is an urgent need for the military to radically overhaul its investigation, victim support and military justice system particularly with respect to sexual assault and harassment. There is also a need for independent overwatch from outside the military with respect to sexual assault and harassment," he wrote.

With inputs from agencies