Fact check: Fake Document Claims 163 Pilots Resigned After the 2025 India–Pakistan Conflict

Assam Police arrested a retired Indian Air Force (IAF) officer on Friday night over alleged links with a Pakistani espionage network. The accused has been identified as Kulendra Sarma, a resident of the Patia locality in Tezpur. He was taken into custody after sustained surveillance and a preliminary investigation by the police.

According to published news reports, police sources said they had been closely monitoring Sarma, who was allegedly in contact with individuals linked to a Pakistani spying agency and was supplying sensitive information. Suspicious materials were recovered from his mobile phone and laptop, although some data is believed to have been deleted. Haricharan Bhumij, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Sonitpur, Assam, stated that while suspicion regarding Sarma’s links with Pakistan is strong, it cannot be confirmed until the investigation is completed.

Amid this, a paper resembling an official document went viral on social media. A post claiming to be a Right to Information (RTI) response from the Indian Air Force (IAF), containing details of officer resignations from 2017 to 2025, is being widely circulated online.

The post alleges that 780 pilots resigned over five years, including 163 after the 2025 India–Pakistan conflict, and further claims that the families of martyred pilots face pressure to remain silent.

Here you can find the archive of the claim.

Fact check:

The claim is false. The August 2020 RTI reply includes resignation data only up to 2019, and no official records or credible news reports support the figures cited.

While examining the claim, we searched using relevant keywords. We did not find any links, images, or documents that support the claim that 780 pilots resigned over five years or that 163 pilots resigned after the India–Pakistan war.

If such events had occurred, they would have been published or broadcast by major frontline media outlets.

However, we found an article published by India Today on 18 August 2020 which reported that a total of 798 Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots resigned between 2010 and 2018. This information was shared by the IAF in response to a Right to Information (RTI) application.

The India Today article reported that pilot resignations peaked in 2016 and 2017 with 100 and 114 pilots leaving the IAF, while 2015 recorded the lowest number at 37. On average, around 80 pilots resigned each year. The report noted that the IAF faced a shortage of 376 pilots in February 2018, with 3,855 pilots against a sanctioned strength of 4,231. It also stated that 289 pilots who resigned were given NOCs to join private airlines, meaning over one-third of those who left in the past decade may now be flying commercial aircraft.

The article also included an image of an RTI reply filed by the same applicant, Ashok Kumar Upadhyay. The document showed similar resignation numbers for earlier years but did not contain any data for 2025. A closer look at the viral image also reveals several inconsistencies.

We also found that the rows in the sheet are not properly aligned, which indicates that the document was edited.

So it's confirm, The original RTI reply, issued in August 2020, contained resignation figures only up to 2019.

The Quint has already debunked the claim and published that the viral claim is false. The original RTI reply, issued in August 2020, contained resignation figures only up to 2019, and no recent official records or news reports support the numbers cited in the post.

India Today mentioned, “Photoshopped RTI peddles FAKE claim that IAF pilots are quitting after Op Sindoor.” The original RTI response was obtained by India Today in 2020.

Hence we found the claim is false. The RTI reply dated August 2020 provides resignation data only up to 2019, and there are no official records or credible news reports that substantiate the figures mentioned in the claim.