The Supreme Court has ruled that women Short Service Commission officers (SSC) of the Army, Navy and Air Force who were released after 14 years of service will be entitled to pension benefits, providing relief through a one-time measure. Women officers released after 14 years of service will now be entitled to pension benefits.
The bench held that officers who were considered for Permanent Commission but were denied it will be deemed to have completed 20 years of qualifying service for the purpose of pension.
Under existing service rules, officers must complete 20 years to qualify for pension. The court invoked its extraordinary powers to extend the benefit as a one-time relief.
Those still in service will be entitled to permanent commission subject to grades obtained, medical criteria, vigilance and disciplinary clearance, the court ruled.
The judgment came on petitions filed by women officers of the Indian Air Force, including Wing Commander Sucheta Edan, who challenged the denial of Permanent Commission under policy changes introduced in 2019.
Court finds flaws in Air Force policy The court said the performance criteria introduced under the 2019 Human Resource Policy were applied without giving officers a fair opportunity to meet them.
It observed that the applicants, who were inducted under the Short Service Commission in 2007, were considered for Permanent Commission in selection boards held in 2019, 2020 and 2021 but were released from service in 2021.
According to the court, the minimum performance criteria introduced for the first time in 2019 was implemented without providing officers reasonable time to adapt to the new standards before the first selection board was held.
The bench also said that the “service length criteria” used in the assessment should not have been treated as a factor indicating unsuitability for Permanent Commission when the officers had never been given a proper opportunity to be assessed for career progression.
Pension as one-time relief The court directed that all Short Service Commission officers who were considered for Permanent Commission in the selection boards of 2019, 2020 and 2021 would be deemed to have completed 20 years of qualifying service and will be entitled to pension and other consequential benefits.
The benefit will also extend to officers who were considered during those selection boards but were declared ineligible.
However, the court clarified that they would not receive arrears of pay.
The pension will be calculated based on the deemed completion of 20 years of service and will take effect from November 1, 2025.