UNEQUAL JUSTICE IN UNIFORM
Recent court orders granting full pension to women Short Service Commission (SSC) officers of the Army—and earlier, of the Air Force—have been widely hailed as long-overdue justice. They are. But they also expose an uncomfortable and troubling truth: justice in uniform appears selective.
For decades, male SSC officers across the Army, Navy and Air Force—released without permanent commissions under identical conditions—have been fighting the very same battle in courts. Their case drags on. Many of these men are now in their eighties. For them, justice delayed is not merely justice denied—it is justice extinguished.
The origins of this inequity go back to the 1960s, when Short Service Commissions were introduced. Since then, the Indian armed forces—especially the Army—have rarely known peace. SSC officers formed the backbone of junior leadership in multiple conflicts, most notably the 1971 Indo-Pak War. In that defining moment of India’s military history, more than half of the Army’s junior leadership consisted of SSC officers. Their courage and competence helped secure a decisive victory that led to the creation of Bangladesh.
Yet, while governments have celebrated that triumph for decades, they have remained conspicuously silent on recognising the contribution of those SSC officers who were denied permanent commissions and unceremoniously released.
The treatment meted out to them borders on the absurd. The government of the day announced a pathway into the civil services through a special examination—only for it to be poorly timed, inaccessible to those deployed in combat zones, and eventually withdrawn. Even when conducted, it was riddled with arbitrary conditions that ensured many deserving officers were excluded. The message was unmistakable: the system had little intention of accommodating those who had served on the frontlines.
Equally paradoxical was the Army’s own approach. Officers deemed “unfit” for permanent commission were routinely granted extensions to continue serving—ostensibly to help them transition to civilian life, but in reality to address acute shortages within the force. This contradiction laid bare the flaws in a deeply subjective evaluation system based on Annual Confidential Reports. Many officers who proved their mettle in combat found their achievements disregarded in favour of earlier, often biased assessments.
When finally released, these officers were left to rebuild their lives from scratch. Some succeeded through sheer grit—finding positions in government, corporate sectors, or as entrepreneurs. Many others did not. Today, a number of them live in financial distress; some have already passed away without recognition or support.
Successive governments have compounded this neglect. Grand commemorations of the 1971 victory have not translated into meaningful action. Even a modest ex-gratia proposal for a small group of identified war veterans remains mired in bureaucratic inertia. The symbolism of celebration has far outweighed the substance of gratitude.
Against this backdrop, the judiciary’s recent intervention for women SSC officers, though just in itself, raises a larger question: why has identical relief been denied—or indefinitely delayed—to their male counterparts?
This is not an argument against justice for women officers. It is an appeal for consistency, fairness, and urgency. When two groups stand on the same legal and moral ground, selective adjudication erodes the very credibility of justice.
The contrast is stark. On one side are ageing veterans who led troops in war, now waiting in vain. On the other are beneficiaries of swift judicial relief under similar circumstances. The issue is not gender—it is equality before the law.
A nation that prides itself on honouring its soldiers cannot afford such selective memory. Nor can its institutions—executive or judicial—justify differential treatment in matters so fundamental.
For the men who fought when it mattered most, time has already run out. The question is whether the system will continue to look away—or finally act before the last of them fades into history.
