IAF officer approaches military court against withdrawal of service extension granted to him

By Ajit K Dubey
New Delhi [India], January 27 (ANI): An Air Vice Marshal from the Indian Air Force has approached a military court in Delhi saying that he was first granted a six months service extension and posted to Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) but this was later withdrawn within a month unilaterally without informing him.
In his application through advocate Ankur Chhibber, Air Vice Marshal J Rajendra has sought the intervention of the Armed Forces Tribunal saying that after being posted to DRDO lab in Bengaluru, he was appointed as the General Manager of the Chitradurga air-field of the agency but without giving any reason, "the said posting was curtailed by an order dated 16.09.2021. The said orders are thus, required to be set aside on this ground alone."
The officer in his plea claimed that he was considered for promotion to the rank of Air Marshal in 2020 but he was not granted promotion despite being above other officers in the merit.
He said his special promotion board was held in February 2021 for promotion to the rank of Air Marshal but the result has not been classified yet and the next vacancy in his Administration branch was emerging only on February 1, 2022, but he was retiring on August 31, 2021.
He said that with this understanding, the tenure of the officer was extended for a period of six months with a clear understanding that the promotion board for promotion to the rank of Air Marshal would be declared within the said period, so that the officer is available on February 1, 2022, when the vacancy of Air Marshal arises.
"Otherwise, without the Applicant seeking any posting, employment etc, there is no other plausible reason to grant the Applicant 06 months tenure at ADE, Bangalore to fill AVM post till February 28, 2022," the officer claimed in his petition.
Chhibber said after his client moved on posting and comprehensively complied with the orders of the government, in "an illegal and arbitrary manner", the respondents are deliberately not complying with their order dated August 27, 2021, despite having allowed the applicant to work beyond August 31, 2021 and have illegally left the applicant in lurch at Bengaluru causing great embarrassment, ignominy and humiliation to him at this stage of his distinguished career.
This is being perpetrated against the officer even while the applicant dutifully complied with the orders ofthe respondents at such short notice with immense difficulty and serving the respondents.
The officer has sought relief that tribunal may quash the retirement order dated August 19, 2020 and letter dated September 16, 2021 whereby the applicant was recalled from DRDO and not allowed to continue in service extension granted to him.
The officer has also asked the court to allow him to serve till February 28, 2022 as per the earlier orders with all consequential benefits.
Rajendra has also sought directions to immediately de-classify the result of the Special Promotion Board held on February 11, 2021 for promotion to the rank of Air Marshal in the Administrative Branch.

He has also asked to be paid appropriate damages for the severe embarrassment, humiliation, ignominy and financial losses unnecessarily caused to him. *ANI)