Court finds Navy commander not guilty of molesting fellow officer's daughter

In a major relief to a naval officer faced with serious allegations of molesting a fellow officer's daughter, a military court has acquitted him of the charges.

The commander-rank officer - equivalent to Lt Col in army - was facing a court martial in Kochi for molesting the daughter of a colleague at the military's prestigious Defence Services Staff College (DSSC) in Tamil Nadu's Wellington.

"The officer was not found guilty on the two charges levelled against him, and he was acquitted by the military court which means that his honour and prestige have been restored," senior navy sources told Mail Today.

The officer's counsel commander Darshan Singh Randhawa (retd) refused to comment on the acquittal of his client by the naval court.

The officer was indicted by a preliminary inquiry after which the court martial was ordered.

As per the initial complaint filed in the case, the alleged incident happened during a party where a child complained about a "bad touch" by one of the persons present there.

Sources said when the child, whose father is also a commander in the navy, pointed towards the officer in the party, the DSSC acted in a hasty manner in taking action against him.

"The officer had undergone one-year course at the DSSC which is one of the most prestigious courses in the armed forces and was not even awarded his degree there. But after the verdict, the officer will get his due from the institution," the sources said.

PROSECUTION COULD NOT PROVE CASE

Sources said the officer was acquitted as the prosecution side could not prove that the alleged crime had taken place and the authorities had not even carried out a medical test of the child after the alleged incident.

The authorities had not even lodged an FIR when the commander was being tried under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, a stringent law enacted in 2012 to prevent abuse and exploitation of children, the sources claimed.

The officer, who is a bright officer from the navy's submarine branch posted in Mumbai, had maintained throughout the proceedings of the case that he was not involved in any way in it and eventually proven right by the court martial headed by Commodore Roy (equivalent to brigadier).

The DSSC trains major/lieutenant colonel-ranked officers of the Army, Navy and Air Force as well as bureaucrats and soldiers from friendly foreign countries.

Officers have to clear a written exam before being selected for the course.