My Identity Crisis: The CAPF soldier’s perennial dilemma

Illustration for representation. (© India Sentinels 2025–26)

Am I a civilian employee, a police officer, or part of the armed forces of the Union? This question is both confusing and difficult to answer. I will attempt to untangle this complex issue using constitutional provisions.

The Seventh Schedule, Article 246, List I, Entry 2 mentions “naval, military and air forces, any other armed forces of the Union”. In common parlance, defence forces consist of the army, navy and air force. They have a clear identity that citizens recognize and respect. This ensures their uniqueness and sacred place in the national security panorama, which they rightly deserve.

This unique identity gives personnel comprising these organizations a sense of pride and a nationally visible and recognizable identity that acts as a morale booster. The uniqueness of identity holds true for every organization in the country, whether defence, civil services or other organizations.

However, the crucial question arises: is this true for the forces under the Union home ministry currently falling under the umbrella of central armed police forces (CAPFs)? As a citizen and veteran of armed forces falling under “military and any other armed forces of Union,” I believe the unique identity given by the constitutional scheme cannot be moderated or diluted through executive orders without parliamentary approval.

The Evolution of Identity

Way back in 1989, when I applied for recruitment as assistant commandant, the advertisement was captioned recruitment of “Group A” officers in central police organizations (CPOs). To the best of my knowledge, this encompassed the Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). These three formed the CPO family.

When I retired in 2018 from the Border Security Force, it had already shed the old coat of CPO and adopted the new umbrella group titled CAPFs. This gave short shrift to “any other armed forces of Union” mentioned in the Constitution.

Entry 2, “any other armed forces of Union”, has a unique character bestowed by the Constitution that cannot be taken away by executive order. Sometimes called paramilitary forces, sometimes central police organizations, sometimes central armed police forces – different labels have been used by the government to play around with the identity of other armed forces of the union like BSF, CRPF, ITBP, Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).

This loose approach denies those comprising them the benefits due to armed forces and a recognizable identity in the national security architecture. The confusion extends to pay commissions, which have referred to them with different nomenclatures, further adding to their identity crisis.

The Pay Commission Paradox

The Fifth Pay Commission refers to BSF, ITBP, CRPF, CISF, and Assam Rifles (AR) as Central Police Organizations (CPOs), but in the same report in para 70.12, terms them as central paramilitary forces (CPMFs), compounding the identity confusion. The Sixth Pay Commission in its March 2008 report in para 7.19.11 states that presently there are seven central paramilitary forces (CPMFs).

It clubs the AR, BSF, CISF, CRPF, ITBP), National Security Guard (NSG) and SSB. Elsewhere, the pay panel compares these CPMFs with armed forces when it states that the post of additional deputy inspector general has no analogous rank in the commissioned officers of defence forces.

The pay commission clearly recognized them as armed forces but denied benefits of armed forces. Regarding rank structure, these have been tampered with based on erroneous recommendations of the Union home ministry aimed at diluting the armed force character of CAPFs and integrating them with police, denying armed forces benefits and diluting professionalism.

The Fifth Pay Commission recommended abolition of the post of lance naik and upgradation of incumbents to naik. However, the government, to bring parity with Delhi Police, abolished the rank of lance naik and naik – a move that dented the armed forces character of CAPFs. The Sixth Pay Commission did not agree to restore these ranks, thus continuing with this perpetual error.

Constitutional Foundation

The Border Security Force Act 1968 preamble states: “An act to provide for constitution and regulation of an armed force of the union for ensuring security of borders of India and matters connected therewith.” Similar language is true for other forces under the present CAPFs umbrella with minor variation, but the core remains as armed forces of the Indian Union.

The question arises: why has the Government of India, specifically the Union home ministry, been playing around with the identity of other armed forces of the union so that their nomenclature pendulum remains irrational? Tomorrow, the government may club them under some other police jargon, further compounding the identity crisis.

The word “police” is added for clubbing them under one name with a specific purpose. All present-day border-guarding and internal security forces are treated as armed forces for the purpose of duty and action but as police for sanction and disbursal of due and legitimate benefits as armed forces.

Operation Sindoor: Recognition and Reality

In the recently concluded Operation Sindoor, which began on May 7, the BSF fought valiantly as an armed force, soldier to soldier with the Indian Army. The operation was India’s response to the Pahalgam terrorist attack on April 22, in which 26 civilians were killed. The prime minister, the chief of Army staff (COAS), and the director general military operations (DGMO) praised the BSF’s performance.

During Operation Sindoor, the BSF played a critical role in thwarting a major infiltration attempt along the international border in the Samba district of Jammu & Kashmir. BSF troops noticed suspicious movement in the early hours and swiftly responded, leading to a heavy exchange of fire. In the ensuing encounter, the BSF successfully neutralized at least two infiltrators and recovered arms, ammunition, and other war-like stores.

The Union home minister, Amit Shah, praised the BSF for its exemplary performance during Operation Sindoor. A total of 16 BSF personnel were awarded gallantry medals for their actions during the operation. Yet, the word “police” continues to be used to deny them their due recognition and benefits as armed forces.

The Benefits Disparity

The CAPFs – the other armed forces of the Union – have been constantly clubbed with civilians and police by different pay commissions based on government recommendations, denying them due pay and perquisites as per the role and tasks envisaged in their acts. These extend to active duty comprising both internal and external security domains, including war fighting.

The BSF, CRPF, ITBP, CISF, and the SSB are armed forces as per their parliamentary-approved acts and have also been declared as armed forces of Union in various court judgments. They have been deprived of the “Old Pension Scheme (OPS)” and instead put under the New Pension System (NPS), clubbing them with police and civilian employees.

The government placed a CRPF soldier fighting insurgency, a BSF soldier deployed in high altitude and hostile borders, an ITBP soldier fighting Chinese forces in snow-clad icy heights, and SSB soldiers dealing with the impact of Nepal unrest on the border at par with civilian employees working in airconditioned Delhi offices.

Despite winning the case on OPS from Delhi high court, the government chose to challenge the judgment in the Supreme Court, showing its step-motherly mindset toward these valiant soldiers ensuring internal and external stabilization of the nation. They are covered under civil services pension rules, clubbing them with civilians for pensionary benefits while denying pensionary benefits of armed forces.

The Constitutional Imperative

The central armed police forces are categorized under the “other armed forces” in the Union List of the Constitution of India and function in accordance with Article 355, which mandates the Union to protect states against “external aggression” and “internal disturbances”. The Administrative Reforms Commission observed that the Central Reserve Police Force and Border Security Force are armed forces raised by the Union to meet the security needs of the country, both external and internal.

The Delhi high court recently held that the CAPFs are the armed forces of the Union and, therefore, entitled to benefits of the Old Pension Scheme as granted to the Indian Army, Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force. This judicial recognition validates what the Constitution already established.

A Solution for Identity Restoration

CAPFs are trained to fight to ensure security and territorial integrity of the country and will continue to fight for national security without demanding anything from the government in return. It is for the government to do justice with them and treat them truly as armed forces of the Indian Union.

What is the solution to restore my identity and pull me out of this moral identity dilemma? The Centre must club the present-day seven CAPFs into two groups as armed forces of union since they fall under union list entry 2 in the seventh schedule.

The CRPF, CISF, and the NSG should be clubbed under the umbrella of Union internal security forces (UISF). The BSF, ITBP, SSB, and the AR should be clubbed under the unique name Union border-guarding forces (UBGF), thus restoring their unique identity and pulling them out of the continuous identity change syndrome since their raising.

Before the Eighth Pay Commission, they must be presented as armed forces of union and given all benefits applicable to armed forces. Similarly, the Centre must recommend to the Eighth Pay Commission to restore the rank of lance naik and naik and pre-designate second-in-command as commandant (ordinary grade).

The CAPF cadre should be given the honour of commanding these forces in the interest of identity and professionalism. Name gives identity and is crucial for imbibing a sense of pride in an individual and organization. The government needs to pull CAPFs out of the manufactured identity crisis imposed upon them by tinkering with their identity.

Their place of pride as armed forces needs to be restored in the interest of their identity and professionalism to pull them out of this moral identity dilemma. The constitutional recognition of these forces as “other armed forces of the Union” must translate into practical benefits and organizational respect that matches their sacrifices and contributions to national security.

^Disclaimer:^{The views expressed in the article are the author’s own and don’t necessarily reflect the views of India Sentinels.}

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