Lt Colonel stripped of uniform for illicit affair with woman clerk, donating sperm

Dehradun: An illicit affair with a married civilian woman clerk, the donation of sperm to the same woman for in-vitro fertility treatment and some other charges in this regard made a Lieutenant Colonel posted at the prestigious Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun for court-martial after he has been found guilty of all charges.

The court-martial proceedings, which concluded yesterday at the Bengal Engineer Group and Centre in Roorkee, saw the officer pleading guilty to all charges brought against him and being handed a severe reprimand and penalties. These actions were taken based on the complaint filed by the woman, who was employed at the academy.

According to a report published in The Indian Express, the accused, a member of the Army Education Corps and serving in the Academic Branch of IMA Dehradun, had developed an intimate relationship with the woman clerk, who happened to be married to a Havildar in the Corps of Engineers. The officer himself was also married and had a family of his own.

During the investigation, it came to light that the officer had accompanied the woman clerk on multiple occasions for her in-vitro fertility treatments and had also donated his sperm for the procedure. The relationship abruptly ended when the officer was posted out of IMA Dehradun, prompting the woman to file a complaint with the police and subsequently with the Army authorities.

The General Court Martial, which included two defence counsel and a prosecution team, handed down a severe reprimand and a sentence of forfeiture of three years' service for the officer's substantive rank of Lieutenant Colonel. Additionally, he will lose three years' seniority of rank and three years' service for increased pay.

Initially, the accused officer had pleaded not guilty to the charges, which included having an affair with a married woman, donating his sperm for fertility treatment, and improperly obtaining a dependent card for the woman, falsely representing her as his wife. However, after the prosecution presented compelling evidence, including WhatsApp chats and phone recordings, the officer chose to withdraw his plea and admitted guilt on all counts.