CHANDIGARH: The Punjab and Haryana HC has issued notice to the central government on a petition filed by a former woman officer of the Indian Army seeking directions that the term “ex-serviceman” be replaced by gender-neutral and gender-inclusive terms such as “ex-service members” or “ex-service personnel”.

Her main contention is that she is a woman, not a man, and thus former woman officers like herself should not be called ex-servicemen.A division bench comprising acting Chief Justice Ritu Bahri and Justice Nidhi Gupta, issued the notice on the plea filed by Captain Sukhjit Pal Kaur Sanewal (Retd), who was among the initial Short Service Commission woman officers in the Army.She pointed out that while women were always a part of the Army as nurses and doctors, they have also been serving in other arms and services since the 1990s, and now are even holding command appointments after judgments to this effect by HCs and the SC.

However, according to the petitioner, former women officers continued to be referred to as “ex-serviceman” and “ex-servicemen” in government policies and schemes.

“This not only results in mis-gendering but also sounds outdated and promotes gender stereotypes,” the petitioner submitted.The plea stated, “While much progress has been made, the continued use of gendered language remains a significant, yet easy to remove, stumbling block to a more inclusive environment in the defence services.”