Territorial Army can hire women, says Delhi High Court

In a remarkable decision, the Delhi High Court has given its nod for the recruitment of women in the Territorial Army (TA).The court said that any provision that bars them is ultra vires fundamental rights provided under the Constitution.

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar held that 'any person' mentioned in the Section 6 of the Territorial Army Act would include both men and women.

"Women are eligible for recruitment and appointment to the Territorial Army under Section 6 of the Indian Territorial Army Act, 1948," the bench said, adding that the Centre had "failed to show any decision of policy, let alone binding policy, enabling them to deny opportunity to the women to serve in all units of the TA. No rationale has been offered to justify or sustain the action of the respondents enforcing a bar against recruitment of women through their advertisements".

The Territorial Army is a part of Regular Army and its present role is to relieve the Regular Army from static duties and assist civil administration in dealing with natural calamities and maintenance of essential services in situations where life of the communities is affected or the security of the Country is threatened and to provide units for Regular Army as and when required.

The court's decision comes after a PIL was filed by advocate Kush Kalra alleging that discrimination against women in recruitment in the TA, in which actor Mohanlal and cricketers Kapil Dev and M S Dhoni are honorary members holding senior ranks.

The bench, while deciding the plea, filed through advocate Charu Wali Khanna, also said that any provisions of the Act which bans the appointment of women in the Territorial Army would be ultra vires the fundamental rights of equality provided under the Constitution.

"It is declared that 'any person' mentioned in Section 6 of the Territorial Army Act, 1948 includes both males as well as females. The impugned advertisements to the extent they exclude women from appointment to the Territorial Army and the claimed policy in this regard are ultra vires of Articles 14, 15, 16 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India and are hereby quashed," the bench said.

The plea had alleged that the advertisements issued for recruitment are discriminatory.

The bench found substance in the claim and said, "The impugned advertisements imposing a blanket bar on appointment of women to both departmental and non-departmental battalions of the TA without any credible, reasonable or compelling justification for imposing such restrictions. The restriction of enrolment of women contained in the impugned advertisements and the claimed policy is neither reasonable nor rational and has to be quashed".

"At present, Indian Territorial Army (ITA) recruits only males (gainfully employed) for serving the Territorial Army. Due to this institutionalised discrimination, women are being deprived of their right to serve in Territorial Army. This discrimination on grounds of gender is violative of fundamental freedom and human rights of the women," the plea alleged.

Support to army

• The Territorial Army is a part of Regular Army and its present role is to relieve the Regular Army from static duties and assist civil administration in dealing with natural calamities and maintenance of essential services in situations where life of the communities is affected or the security of the Country is threatened and to provide units for Regular Army as and when required.