Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Raghav Chadha on Saturday wrote to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh asking him to roll back the “ill-conceived” Agnipath scheme. In a letter, Chadha said the scheme had “justifiably caused great anguish among potential recruits from across the country”. He further sought Singh’s attention on five issues related to the new recruitment scheme.
Taking to Twitter, the AAP national spokesperson shared the letter written to Singh. “Through this letter, I implore the Hon'ble Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh ji to roll-back the ill-thought Agnipath scheme and stop this ‘trial by fire’ of youth of our country,” Chadha said.
In the letter, the AAP leader said, “The recent modification to the basic structure of the Army has justifiably caused great anguish among potential recruits from across the country. The hopes and dreams of many young aspirants have been stifled by the controversial ‘contractualization’ of the Armed forces.”
Chadha also highlighted the key five issues in the scheme according to him in his letter. “Firstly, we need jawans with peace of mind and job security. The Union government has failed to comprehend that a jawan supports not only himself but his family.
Only individuals with courage and peace of mind can serve in the armed forces. A jawan that is busy contemplating career moves or wondering how his family will survive after his tenure of four years is over will find it harder to serve our country. An ill-motivated soldier is certainly an avoidable proposition,” he wrote.
“Secondly, the scheme has overlooked issues of inadequate skilling.
The Agnipath scheme allows for Agniveers to undergo a crash course in training of six months. An abnormally short period of training will have adverse consequences on the quality of service discharged.
The scheme allows for greenhorns to face the nation’s greatest security challenges. Resultantly, we will be saddled without sufficient leadership and experience amongst the troops,” he wrote.
Thirdly, Chadha said “the Union government’s financial obligations towards the defence pension bill should not be offset by sacrificing the job security of our jawans” and that “lives cannot be put at stake to balance the budget”.
“Fourthly, the scheme negates regimental honour and erodes the quality of our troops. Unity and coordination amongst troops is what drives our armed forces towards excellence, and with a shorter duration spent with their peers, we are sacrificing the spirit of the forces. It is the ethos of the regiment that keeps jawans united and determined. Any recruitment scheme must respect the regimental honour and ethos built into the system which has been bringing laurels to the country,” he wrote.
“Fifth, such experiments should not be imposed en masse. This scheme has been implemented without running any pilot schemes. Such pilot schemes, preferably outside of the armed forces, would have provided an opportunity to [be deliberated on] before deciding. A consultative exercise could have followed thereafter to avoid national embarrassment and despair amongst the youth,” he wrote.
He also mentioned that Aam Aadmi Party (AAP ) Chief Arvind Kejrival has also urged the government to roll back the Agnipath scheme in a permanent manner not a temporary basis.
