Justice in uniform

Thanks to l'affaire Bhagwat, the Law Commission which has been examining the justice system in the armed forces for 20 years or so appear...

Thanks to l8217;affaire Bhagwat, the Law Commission which has been examining the justice system in the armed forces for 20 years or so appears at last to be ready with some recommendations for improving the system.

Before so much dirty linen was washed in public, it was generally assumed that justice was delivered in the defence services, by and large, efficiently and faultlessly. What now emerges from the increasing resort to high courts by armed forces personnel is a justice system under strain. This could be due either to a high degree of dissatisfaction with court martial decisions and redressal of grievances ROG procedures, or to the fact that defence personnel have developed an appetite for litigation on par with that of civilians, or both. Certainly a large number of the writ petitions filed in high courts, including many by top-ranking officers, are concerned with grievances over promotions and transfers and similar matters. But since the early 1990s, if not before, defence personnel have alsobeen knocking at high court doors 8212; and been admitted 8212; in appeal against court martial verdicts. It would seem, therefore, that both the arms of the defence services justice system 8212; the court martial and the ROG 8212; are not functioning like well-oiled machines. Civilian and military authorities ought to look into the phenomenon and find ways of setting right problems before another 20 years pass.

The spillover into the civilian courts suggests that men and women in uniform can when the need is felt seek justice outside the defence set-up. As far as court martial cases are concerned and without specific amendments to the army, air force and navy acts, the practice of filing appeals in high courts meets the requirement of a higher appellate body which the Supreme Court spelled out many years ago. But once such cases go into the civilian justice system a whole host of difficult issues crop up from the individual8217;s point of view and from that of the defence services. Apart from the costs of legal services,the individual in uniform is likely to confront the same long delays that civilians do. While justice delayed is bad enough for any citizen in any walk of life it has particularly damaging repercussions on defence personnel morale and discipline.

The Law Commission8217;s proposal for an appellate tribunal manned by two senior servicing officers and a retired civilian judge should be seriously examined to see if it fits the bill. Although revision petitions are made and heard in court martial cases, that may or may not be enough to meet the ends of justice. Protracted high court processes certainly do not serve the purpose. Something in between, that is neither all-military nor all-civilian sounds like a good idea. It might also be worth examining whether intractable ROG cases, like Harinder Singh8217;s, are best heard by a military board or other body or continue as usual to be heard in high courts with all that entails for morale and discipline. The important thing is to recognise there is a problem and find ajust and fair solution within the shortest possible time.