‘Captain Shiv Kumar not recalled’: Govt busts misinformation campaign, says Defence Attaché still posted in Jakarta

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has debunked a fake report claiming that a Defence Attaché posted at the Indian Embassy in Jakarta has been recalled. The ministry has clarified that Captain Shiv Kumar continues to serve as the Defence Attaché in Jakarta.

The fake letter, claimed to have been issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, has gone viral on X. Sharing the fabricated image, the account holder wrote, “The price of speaking the truth. In Jakarta, Indian Defence Attaché Captain Shiv Kumar Singh (Indian Navy) was recalled to India prematurely and asked to report to Indian Navy Intelligence for further investigation. Captain Shiv had blamed the country’s political leadership for the crash of an Indian aircraft.”

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It also posted an image of a forged letter dated July 7, which claimed that the premature repatriation of the naval officer with immediate effect was carried out on administrative grounds arising from his public remarks at Universitas Pertahanan, Jakarta on 10 June 2025.

The Fact Check team of the Press Information Bureau (PIB), under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, stated that the letter was fake and the officer is still posted at the embassy.

“A #fake letter falsely attributed to the Ministry of Home Affairs, claiming the recall of Captain (Indian Navy) Shiv Kumar, Defence Attaché at the Indian Embassy in Jakarta, is circulating on social media,” said a statement issued by the Press Information Bureau (PIB).

“The letter is part of a misinformation campaign by Pakistani propaganda accounts. Captain Shiv Kumar continues to serve as the Defence Attaché in Jakarta. Postings of Indian Navy officers of the rank of Captain fall under the jurisdiction of the Integrated HQ of MoD (Navy),” it said in a post on X.

The PIB statement also clarified that the “Ministry of Home Affairs has no role in the appointment or recall of Defence Attachés”.

Calling out the bluff and debunking the claim, the post further stated that the postings of Indian Navy officers of the rank of Captain fall under the jurisdiction of the Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence (Navy). “The Ministry of Home Affairs has no role in the appointment or recall of Defence Attachés,” it read with added caution of not falling for misinformation and always verifying such claims through official sources.

The controversy erupted after the naval officer claimed in June that the Air Force had lost ‘some’ jets during Operation Sindoor. “I may not agree with him that India lost so many aircraft. But I do agree that we did lose some aircraft, and that happened only because of the constraint imposed by the political leadership to not attack their military establishments and air defences,” he had said. The Indian Embassy later clarified that the officer’s remarks had been quoted out of context.