Chief of the Army Staff, General Bipin Rawat

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on January 10 strongly asserted that the Indian Army will not implement recent Supreme Court judgements decriminalising gay sex and extra-marital affairs.

"In the Army, this is not acceptable. We will deal with it under various sections of the Army Act," he declared at his annual press conference in New Delhi, while responding to questions from journalists.

In separate judgements, the Supreme Court recently struck down Sections 377 and 497 of the Indian Penal Code. These were British colonial era laws which treated gay sex and adultery respectively as criminal offences and prescribed jail terms for those held guilty.

While conceding that it is not above the law of the land, he insisted the Army is out of bounds for social glasnost. "We're not above the law but in the Indian Army, some of the rights and privileges (taken for granted by society) are not available to Army personnel. For instance, we don't have the right to form a union," he attempted to reason his position. "We're different. Let's wait and watch," he said.

While holding that there would be no compromise on the social conservatism of the Army, the General's response suggested that the Army takes an even sterner view of adultery than it does of gay sex. The Army is very harsh on adulterous relationships, particularly those involving a serving personnel with a colleague's wife. Even though this is not listed as an offence on the statute books, the military treats this as unpardonable, and terms it as "stealing the affections of a brother officer's wife". Once proved, it often invites summary dismissal. Even Generals have not been spared.

"The soldier posted on the front has to be reasonably assured," General Rawat said, holding this to be a deeply sensitive subject for the Army. "The Army is a family. Family members left behind (by soldiers and officers deployed on the front) are looked after at peace stations by officers deputed by the local commander," he explained. Any extra-marital affair with a personnel's wife is unacceptable, as its seen as a deep emotional distraction for a man deployed on the front.

"The Army is conservative. We haven't modernised (socially) or westernised. This (adultery) can't be allowed to happen," he stressed. "We will deal with this under Rules 63 of the Army Act, which deals with acts prejudicial to good order and military discipline," the Army Chief insisted.