‘Will scrap Agnipath, revert to old system if voted to power’
Agnipath scheme gross injustice to country’s youth, Congress chief Kharge writes to President Droupadi Murmu
Stepping up its attack on the Union government over the “Agnipath” military recruitment scheme, the Congress alleged on Monday that “gross injustice” was done to youngsters and demanded that those who had cleared the old recruitment process but were not inducted be immediately given jobs.
The Opposition party asserted that it would revert to the old recruitment system if voted to power at the Centre.
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to President Droupadi Murmu, highlighting the “gross injustice” done to the youngsters seeking regular employment in the armed forces due to the “Agnipath” scheme, and urged her to ensure justice for them.
The future of nearly two lakh young men and women has become uncertain due to the scrapping of the regular recruitment process in the armed forces, Kharge said in his letter to the president, who is the supreme commander of the armed forces.
“There are many well-known issues with the Agnipath scheme. Former Chief of Army Staff General M M Naravane has written that the Army was ‘taken by surprise’ by Agnipath and that ‘for the Navy and Air Force, it came like a bolt from the blue’,” he said.
“Furthermore, the scheme is discriminatory among our jawans by creating parallel cadres of soldiers who are expected to work on similar tasks, but with very different emoluments, benefits and prospects. The majority of Agniveers will be released into an uncertain job market after four years of service, which some have argued could affect social stability,” Kharge said.
Tagging Kharge’s letter, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on X: “We are with the military candidates, who are full of patriotism and bravery, in the fight for justice.”
In his letter to the president, Kharge said, “Our youth cannot be allowed to suffer in this manner. I appeal to you to ensure that justice is done.”
The “Agnipath” scheme provides for recruiting youngsters in the age bracket of 17 years and a half to 21 years for a four-year period, with a provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years.
