Navy Court-Martials Captain, Lieutenant Commander Over INS Brahmaputra Capsizing

The Indian Navy has begun court-martial proceedings against two officers over the July 21, 2024 fire and partial capsizing of the frigate INS Brahmaputra at Mumbai Naval Dockyard.

The officers are a captain and a lieutenant commander. The Navy has charged the ship’s commanding officer with hazarding a naval ship and negligence, while the officer of the day faces a separate negligence charge.

Charges against the two officers

The Navy is pursuing the two officers for negligence connected to the incident. The commanding officer faces two charges, one for putting the warship in danger and one for negligence. The officer of the day has been charged with negligence for the role he held when the mishap occurred.

Reports identify the two as a captain and a lieutenant commander. A conviction could bring penalties ranging from a reprimand and loss of seniority to imprisonment for up to two years. Even the milder outcomes would end the commanding officer’s prospects, the reports said.

The proceedings mark the Navy’s most formal step against personnel after the incident. Court-martial proceedings have begun, though the published reports do not provide the hearing schedule.

Fire at the dockyard and the missing sailor

INS Brahmaputra was undergoing repairs at Mumbai Naval Dockyard when a fire broke out aboard the ship on July 21, 2024. The fire damaged the warship, and the vessel subsequently tilted.

A sailor went missing after the fire. Officials later confirmed that the missing Navy sailor’s body had been recovered. The recovery ended the search announced when the ship was damaged.

Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, then the Vice Chief of the Indian Navy, addressed the situation days after the fire. He said the indigenous frigate had tilted and confirmed that the Navy would conduct an inquiry and continue searching for the missing sailor.

Damage to the indigenous frigate

The ship capsized partially while in dockyard for refitting. Reporting at the time described the overturning as occurring under mysterious circumstances and placed it in a string of recent naval accidents.

The sequence of events began with fire during repairs, followed by serious damage and the ship taking on a tilting or partially inverted position. Officials used both “tilted” and “toppled” descriptions while assessing the damage.

The damaged frigate was an indigenous warship, and Navy leadership spoke publicly about its condition in the days after the fire. The later recovery of the missing sailor came after that search was launched.

What conviction could bring

The maximum penalty in the court-martial is two years’ imprisonment. The range includes a reprimand and loss of seniority, depending on how the service court assesses the charges.

For the commanding officer, even the lighter outcomes would close off the prospects previously associated with command. The lieutenant commander faces a separate negligence charge concerning his duties as officer of the day.

The court-martial is ongoing, and the officers charged are a captain and a lieutenant commander.