R Sedhuraman
Legal Correspondent
New Delhi, November 20
The Supreme Court today issued notice on the Centre’s petition challenging the Delhi High Court judgment directing grant of permanent commission to all women officers in the Navy.
A Bench comprising Justices TS Thakur and V Gopala Gowda, however, restrained the Navy from releasing from service the women officers who had approached the HC, provided they had joined service prior to the permanent commission policy of September 26, 2008.
In its September 4, 2015 judgment, the HC had faulted the government’s decision to restrict permanent commission to women officers in three branches of the Navy — education, law and Naval construction — and to those joining service after the September 26, 2008 policy.
Seventeen Short Service Commissioned women officers, including Lt Cdr Annie Nagaraja, Urmila Bhat and Commander Pritika B Sharma, had approached the HC, challenging the government’s decision to restrict permanent commission to new recruits in three branches. Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi and Additional Solicitor General Maninder Singh said the HC had presumed that there was gender discrimination in the Navy.