Another cutting edge Indian Military Inovation to increase camaraderie among their officers and improve esprit de corps - Wife Swapping.
Husband's seniors molested me, Navy officerâs wife alleges
Himanshi Dhawan, TNN Apr 12, 2013, 03.36AM IST
Tags:wife-swapping|Southern Naval Command|Navy Wives Welfare Association|Navy|Defence minister A K Antony
NEW DELHI: Drawn by his handsome looks and six-pack, IIT-Bombay graduate Sumedha (name changed) quit her Morgan Stanley career to get married only to see her dreams shattered within a few months. Not only did she witness her Navy officer husband in a compromising position with a senior officer's wife but was told that she too would have to be part of the "wife-swapping evenings" if she wanted her husband to keep his job.
"When I saw my husband with the other lady I started to cry and question my husband. The woman instead shouted at me, slapped me and threatened me with dire consequences if I did not keep quiet," the 25-year-old said.
The Navy has flatly denied the allegations with defence minister A K Antony seeking a report on the matter.
Sumedha, who was living with her husband in Kochi, reached Delhi late on Thursday evening. Remarkably calm and collected, she recalled how her frantic calls to the Southern Naval Command, residences of Chief of Naval Staff and the defence minister went unanswered. Sumedha, who is preparing for her civil services, said 20-30% of naval officers indulged in wife-swapping. "There are parties every day and the women wear very revealing, almost vulgar clothes. I found later that wife-swapping was common there," she said.
When asked how she could substantiate her allegations, Sumedha said, "I know what I have seen. There has been a complaint filed earlier about wife-swapping in 2011 on INS Dronacharya but the officers involved were posted out and the issue buried."
Sumedha, who has filed a complaint with the Harbour police station in Kochi and the Vasant Vihar police station in Delhi, said she was molested by senior officers in the presence of her husband. "I was bound down and molested my three of my husband's colleagues. My husband then threw me out of the house," she said.
She added that the only time her husband had shown remorse was when he told her that he had to indulge in this "wife-swapping" or he would lose his job. "Officers and sailors, they were all afraid to say anything or come to my rescue because they feared being thrown out of the Navy," she said.
When asked about allegations that she was mentally unstable, Sumedha said, "How can a marriage counselor certify my mental fitness. Anyway, where is the proof that I even went to a counselor?"
On the Navy's denial of her allegations, Sumedha said, "It doesn't matter what they say. I know the truth. I have already asked my lawyer to take up the issue with the police." She also claimed that she had been offered Rs 2 crore to settle the matter.
Defence minister A K Antony has sought a report from the Navy on the allegations even as naval officials said they had already launched a probe.
The defence minister's office, however, said they were yet to receive a formal complaint though the lieutenant's wife insisted that she had sent a complaint to the minister through registered post in the first week of March but had not received any response.
An Southern Naval Command official confirmed it had launched an investigation. "The Chief of Naval Staff 's office has asked for a report, based on the lady's complaint a week ago," the official said.