Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has once again reiterated his promise to scrap the Agniveer scheme, claiming that it was ‘implemented by Prime Minister Narendra Modi against the soldiers and the country’.
Addressing a rally in Bihar’s Bhagalpur, Gandhi promised, “As soon as our INDIA bloc government comes to power, we will throw this scheme out and finish it.”
“(Prime Minister) Narendra Modi has implemented the ‘Agniveer’ scheme against the soldiers and Hindustan. This scheme is not being liked by any youth in Hindustan. As soon as our INDIA bloc government comes to power, we will throw this scheme out and finish it.”
He further said that “There is no need for this scheme. India does not need two types of martyrs. Hindustan needs only one type of martyr. Every soldier should get the rank of martyr. Everyone should get the pension.”
Gandhi’s latest remarks on the controversial Army recruitment scheme has triggered a debate among defence experts, who expressed mixed views on the Congress party’s promise to scrap the scheme.
What defence experts say on ‘scrapping Agniveer’ scheme
Defence expert Major General (Retd) GD Bakshi said, “I have some reservations personally about this scheme. My suggestion is that instead of throwing the baby out with the bathwater, this scheme be appropriately tweaked after trials.”
Wing Commander (Retd) Praful Bakshi said, “If some political leader is suggesting that they would reject it (Agniveer scheme), then it should be the voice of the public, saying it should be scrapped. Then it will be seen.”
“But in our opinion, there is no need to scrap it,” he added.
PK Sehgal, another defence expert, said there are a lot of drawbacks to this scheme and that it was forcefully imposed.
“The scheme was forcefully imposed without any debate in Parliament. There are a lot of drawbacks to this scheme and the government understands it. In reality, the government has given a handle to the opposition to use it, and Rahul Gandhi is using it,” he said.
The Agnipath scheme was announced by the Modi government in June 2022. The scheme seeks to recruit soldiers for a period of four years with a provision to retain only 25 per cent of them in regular service.