NEW DELHI: The Navy has sacked a Commodore for having a sexual affair with the wife of a similar rank officer in Southern Naval Command (SNC) at Kochi, in a relatively rare instance of strict action being taken against such a senior officer.
The Commodore (equivalent to a Brigadier in the Army), who was posted as chief staff officer (operations) in the SNC, was found guilty of "stealing the affections of a brother officer's wife" by the Board of Inquiry (BoI).
The BoI was ordered into the episode after the women's husband, also a Commodore, complained to top naval authorities about the affair, said an official.
"Stealing the affections of a brother officer's wife" may be a quaint term but is taken very seriously in the armed forces, which justifiably pride themselves on their sense of brotherhood. It's considered a court-martial offense but many officers, including a few generals, have been told to quietly put in their papers and leave the service for the "offense" over the years.
In the present case, the Commodore was summarily dismissed without a court-martial, with "a penalty in his pensionary benefits", since he admitted to the affair, said the official.
"The complainant first divorced his wife about six months ago before he notified the authorities about the case. Both the Commodores have college-going kids," said the officer.
The Navy has been rocked by a series of sex scandals in the last three-four years. But the last time when such a senior officer got sacked was when Sukhjinder Singh, who was involved in the $2.33 billion negotiations for aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov from Russia, was dismissed in 2011. Though there was talk of "a honey-trap" after his sexually explicit photographs with a Russian woman had surfaced, the Navy had dubbed it "baseless" and claimed there was no adverse impact on the protracted and bitter negotiations. The Navy is already grappling with allegations of a sexual nature in three to four cases. The force has also sacked two commander-rank officers in Mumbai — one for having an extra-marital affair and the other for sending lewd text messages to several women — in recent times.
via Times of India ,
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