Going against a military court's order to reinstate her, the Indian Air Force (IAF) has approached the Supreme Court against allowing wing commander Pooja Thakur - the poster girl of rising women power in the armed forces - in service as a permanent commission officer.

The IAF has filed a plea against Thakur's reinstatement by the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) and the case is scheduled to come up for hearing on Monday in the apex court. The lady officer had become famous after she led the tri-services' guard of honour during President Barack Obama's visit to India. In the plea filed in the Supreme Court, the IAF has apparently tried to dismiss the lady officer's act of fame by saying that she was one of the two officers trained for the guard of honour to President Obama while she was handling media relations for the event.

"The participation in the guard of honour can at best be stated to exhibition of a very small number of traits from a numerous traits that are held important to be an officer," the IAF said in its plea.

The IAF has also alleged that the lady officer has always demanded postings in Delhi and "displayed lack of interest in postings in difficult areas". The IAF has also said that she was given the opportunity to decide on whether she wanted to continue in service and was told that being "unable to display decisiveness is clearly undesirable in an officer".

In July, the AFT had reinstated Thakur in service while asking the IAF to consider her "without ill will" for granting her a permanent commission. Thakur came up as the symbol of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's showcasing of women power or stree shakti in the defence forces when she became the first woman officer in India to lead a guard of honour for President Barack Obama in 2015.

After being denied extension in service, Thakur had moved court against the IAF against her discharge and denial of permanent commission in service. The military court had told the Air Force, "We only hope and trust that the case of the applicant shall be considered without any rancor and ill will for having approached the tribunal for grant of permanent commission." When the IAF made a plea in the tribunal that the lady officer was interested in posting only in Delhi, the court had remarked, "Even if we assume that she had made a request to remain in Delhi or in and around Delhi, it is the Air Force which has been obliging her... Therefore, these submissions are in our view, totally irrelevant for deciding the question of grant of permanent commission."

The court noted that the Air Force was opposing the applicant rather than being gracious to consider her case sympathetically. The court had also said that granting permanent commission, especially to women officers must be given a liberal construction and it should be interpreted in a manner which would be beneficial to the women officers rather than the employer.

Also watch: Wing Commander Pooja Thakur, who led Obama's guard of honour, takes IAF to court