Benefits to disabled officer cadets: SC rebukes Centre for non-compliance

The Supreme Court on Wednesday rebuked the Centre for its failure to comply with its directions to reconsider welfare measures for military officer cadets who became unfit due to any disability suffered during their training period.

A bench of Justices BV Nagarathna, R Mahadevan and DK Upadhyaya was hearing a suo motu case related to the difficulties faced by cadets who were boarded out due to injury or disablement during training. The top court noted that there had been no genuine reconsideration of the recommendations of the 2015 Sabharwal Committee report despite clear directions issued on August 4, 2026.

The 2015 Sabharwal Committee was constituted for review of service and pension matters including potential disputes, minimising litigation and strengthening institutional mechanisms related to redressal of grievances. “What is this attitude you are showing to the court? You say we disposed it of in 2022 and there ends the matter. What is the attitude on the part of the department?” Justice Nagarathna observed orally.

The apex court said the affidavit filed by the central Government merely points to meetings held in 2022 and extracted earlier decisions rejecting disability pension and ex-servicemen (ESM) status for the out-boarded officer cadets.

It said there is “no whisper” that the Sabharwal Committee recommendations had been reconsidered in light of the court’s August 4 direction.

“It is only stated (by Centre) that meetings were held in 2022 and the relevant decision has been extracted. It is clear as daylight that there has been no reconsideration of the report by the respondent. “Before we take any other decision which may be adverse to the respondent departments, we give one more opportunity to them to comply with our aforesaid direction and to place on the record the minutes of the meeting held pursuant to our direction,” the bench said. During the hearing, the top court noted that ordinary recruits who are boarded out get disability pension and other benefits, while officer cadets are denied similar treatment.

Senior advocate Rekha Palli, who is amicus curiae in the matter, submitted that there are around 400 such officer cadets in the last so many years.