A war of words has broken out between former Army chief and an ex-Indian Police Service(IPS)officer over the case of alleged sexual assault on an Army officer’s fiancée in a police station in Odisha.

Seeking stern action against the police personnel who allegedly assaulted the woman, former Union minister and army chief General V K Singh said what happened to the woman was “shameful and horrendous.”

“Everyone Must listen to (name withheld), Fiancée of Army officer, Daughter of Rtd Army Officer- What happened to her in PS Bharatpur in #Odisha is shameful and horrendous. @CMO_Odisha should take immediate action against the police personnel and all who are trying to shield the criminals in police uniform. #ShameonOdishaPolice,” he wrote on social media.

Reacting to it, former CBI director M Nageswara Rao, claimed that the Odisha cops were not at fault.

“Sir, it is not done that you, having been a Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and later a Central Minister, jumped to conclusion and castigated Odisha Police for the drunken brawl and uncouth behaviour of an Army officer and his fiancée, and Odisha Police officers were not even at fault,” M Nageswara Rao said in his social media post.

He said the Odisha Police operates over 600 police stations, collectively handling about two lakh cases annually and many individuals including women and Army officers visit these stations to report grievances or seek assistance.

“Odisha Police has more than 600 Police Stations and they together register and investigate about 2 lakh cases annually. Lakhs of people visit Police Stations including women and Army officers to report their grievances or seek help. It is not that they misbehave with people visiting police stations,” said Rao in his post.

He said Indian police respects and honours the military as the nation's last line of defence and it is reasonable to expect reciprocal support from the military.

“Sir, we, the Indian Police, respect and honour our Military because that is the last resort in defending the country from external enemies. A reciprocation from Military towards Police which defends the country from internal enemies, is a normal expectation. Our work is complementary as we together protect the country from within and without,” Rao mentioned.

“Sir, it is not done that you, having been a Chief of Army Staff (COAS) and later a Central Minister, jumped to conclusion and castigated Odisha Police for the drunken brawl and uncouth behaviour of an Army officer and his fiancée, and Odisha Police officers were not even at fault. But I would not chastise the Indian Army by asking, “Is this the kind of discipline that the Indian Army imparts and inculcates in its officers?”. Because an individual’s aberration does not represent an esteemed institution,” he added.

Rao lastly, in the post, said that the conduct of the Army officer was unacceptable and called for accountability to preserve the integrity of the Indian Army.

The Odisha Retired Police Officers Welfare Association, in an open letter, also made similar allegations while saying that a course on "behaviour in public and public offices for Army officers" should be added.