Priyanka Saxena to be reinstated as IAF Squadron Leader, says Air Chief Marshal AP Singh

The Indian Air Force will reinstate former officer and war widow Priyanka Saxena as a Squadron Leader, IAF chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh has confirmed. The decision follows a landmark Supreme Court directive that cleared the legal hurdles preventing her return to active service.

Speaking at his annual press conference on Saturday, Air Chief Marshal Singh said the air force would fully comply with the top court's order. Saxena will undergo medical examinations followed by targeted military and branch-specific training before resuming her career.

"The court judgement has come. We have to follow the orders," Singh said. He explained that Saxena would receive training focused on "the soldier part" and her specific branch of service. Once complete, she will be reinstated as a short-service commissioned officer, entering what will count as the eleventh year of her service.

Why Priyanka Saxena is returning to service

Saxena’s path back to the military has been both tragic and legally complex. She was originally commissioned into the IAF in December 2003, serving for a decade in the logistics branch. In December 2013, she left the service to attend to family commitments.

She later married Wing Commander Harshit Sinha, a veteran fighter pilot. Sinha was killed on 24 December 2021 when his MiG-21 Bison fighter jet crashed during a training flight near Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.

Following her husband’s death, Saxena sought to re-join the air force under policies designed to support war widows, known in India as Veer Naris. However, her application ran into bureaucratic and legal roadblocks, leading to an adverse ruling by the Armed Forces Tribunal earlier this year.

The Supreme Court intervention

The Supreme Court intervened last month, overriding the tribunal’s decision. The judges invoked Article 142 of the Indian Constitution—a provision that grants the court extraordinary powers to deliver complete justice.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court noted that Saxena qualified for re-induction on dual grounds: both as an experienced former officer and as a war widow. Because she had already completed a decade of service, the bench ruled that she should not have to repeat the full, gruelling pre-commission training required of raw recruits. Instead, she only needs to be brought up to speed on her military duties and logistics training.

The IAF chief’s announcement came during a broad briefing ahead of Air Force Day on 8 October. While much of the briefing focused on modernising India's aging fighter fleet, the decision to bring Saxena back highlights the military’s evolving approach to supporting the families of fallen service members.