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Navy to court martial officer for molesting a minor

Navy to court martial officer for molesting a minor

Jun 01, 2017
11:25 am

What's the story

A naval officer is going to be court-martialled for allegedly molesting a colleague's seven-year-old daughter. The incident happened earlier this year at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington, Tamil Nadu. A board of inquiry has found the commander prima facie guilty of "inappropriately" touching the kid at a party. She later complained to her parents about it.

Details

What will happen to the accused now?

Earlier, the inquiry board sent him a show-cause notice, but the officer chose to be tried by court-martial, a source said. "If found guilty, he will be sacked and jailed. There is zero tolerance for sexual misconduct in the armed forces," they added. Though the accused has completed a one-year defence and strategic studies course from the DSSC, he won't be awarded a degree.

Definition

What is court martial?

Defence personnel accused of violating military laws are subjected to a trial, called court martial. Laws for each service (army, navy, air force) are defined separately. A court martial usually consists of five members. Amusingly, none except the judge advocate general is trained in law.