Jammu and Kashmir High Court: Granted anticipatory bail to Indian Air Force Wing Commander in rape case

Srinagar: Pre-arrest bail has been granted by the Jammu and Kashmir High Court to an Indian Air Force Wing Commander who is accused of rape. On Sunday, the Jammu and Kashmir Police filed a first information report (FIR) after a complaint made by a female flying officer who claimed that the Wing Commander had sexually assaulted her.

“As the petitioner who is serving as Wing Commander… and in case of his arrest, his reputation as well as the service career shall be jeopardised,” the bail decision noted.

The police were instructed by the high court to refrain from filing a chargesheet in the case without its consent. “This court has given the inquiry permission to proceed. A single-judge bench issued the decision, saying, “We direct that the chargesheet not be filed without the permission of this court.”

The Additional Advocate General of the Union Territory administration was directed by the high court to provide a status report by the next hearing date. It said that in the event of an arrest, the Wing Commander ought to be freed on bond. The accused Wing Commander was ordered by the high court to appear before the investigating officer between September 14 and September 16, and then at any time after that.

The high court ruled that the accused must provide a ₹ 50,000 bond, cannot leave Jammu and Kashmir without his commanding officer’s consent, and cannot speak with any prosecution witnesses.

The 26-year-old flying officer said in her complaint that throughout the previous two years, she had experienced mental torment, sexual abuse, and harassment.

The officer claims that on December 31, 2023, at a New Year’s celebration held in the officers’ mess, her superior inquired as to whether she had gotten the present. The Wing Commander led her to his quarters and stated the presents were there when she said she hadn’t. He replied his family was elsewhere when she inquired about their whereabouts.

The flying officer said that after that, her superior harassed and coerced her into oral sex. “I tried to oppose it in any way I could, and I implored him to stop doing it again and again. I finally shoved him and took off running. He promised to see me again on Friday when his family departs,” she said.

According to the flying officer, she needed some time to process what had occurred to her. “I was scared and unsure of what to do since I had been discouraged from reporting in the past as well. He came to see me at work after this occurrence. He acted as though nothing had occurred, and she saw no regret in his eyes,” she said.

The female officer said that after contacting two other female police, they gave her advice on how to submit a complaint. “I can’t describe the  mental agony of being an unmarried girl who joined forces and was treated in such a  heinous manner,” she said.

She said that after filing a complaint, an officer with the rank of colonel was instructed to look into the occurrence. She has said that in order to record the remarks, the Wing Commander forced her to sit down with him twice in January of this year. According to her, the probe was subsequently closed in order to “hide mistakes of administration” since she didn’t agree with the senior officer’s presence.

The internal committee convened two months after she submitted a new application. She has said, “It broke my heart that the Stn (Station) authorities were biased in favor of the sexual offender,” and claimed that a medical examination was not performed until she repeatedly pushed.

“The internal committee (IC) failed to carry out its duties effectively as higher-ups had instructed it to maintain the outcome’s neutrality. Everybody was supporting the sexual offender, according to the flying officer. She said that neither her demands for an alternative assignment for herself or the Wing Commander nor her requests for temporary relief nor leave were fulfilled. “I requested for interim relief and requested leave multiple times but I was denied leave each time,” she added.

“Even if my abuser is having fun, I am compelled to interact with these people and go to events with him. I am constantly being hounded by the authorities,” the woman said.

She has said that the internal committee concluded its investigation in May, stating that the absence of an eyewitness renders the incident’s cause uncertain. “Isn’t it common sense that someone would not do sexual assault in front of a witness?”

The “social boycott” and “continuous mental harassment” have been reported by the Flying Officer. “Unofficial observers have been tracking my private chats nonstop. The people I spoke to are being hounded by the police.”

She claimed that her mental health has suffered greatly as a result of the continuous harassment. “My social life has been totally upended; I am always afraid, and I am being watched all the time. I’ve been thinking about suicide because of the harassment, and I feel completely powerless. My everyday activities are disrupted, and authorities actively monitor and discourage my social relationships. I am at my breaking point because I have put up with this pain for far too long,” she said.