Wildfires in Agnipath protests
One person was killed in police firing in Secunderabad, the first casualty of protests against the Agnipath defence recruitment scheme that raged through several states for the third day on Friday with trains torched, public property vandalised and many thousands blocking tracks and highways by angry protesters despite the government’s late night age waiver decision.
In a statement on Thursday night, the government granted a two-year age relaxation for the short-term recruitment of soldiers in defence services through a one-time waiver to assuage concerns, as the row also took a political turn with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) courting criticism from several Opposition parties
However, the stir continued to mount on Friday with at least 200 trains affected, 35 cancelled and 13 short-terminated, railway officials said. As angry crowds, some armed with brickbats and stones, fanned out across large parts of India, from Uttar Pradesh to Telangana and Bihar to Madhya Pradesh.
The protesters were angry with changes introduced under the new scheme, particulary the length of service, no pension provisions for those released early, and particularly the fact that restricting the age limit to 21 would have kept many of the aspirants completely out of the fold considering the recruitment was halted for two years.
The government’s Thursdaynight decision was meant to address this key concern.
On Tuesday, defence minister Rajnath Singh, along with the three service chiefs, announced the Agnipath scheme for induction of soldiers between 17.5 and 21 years for a four-year period. In
the new policy, only a quarter of the initial intake will eventually be absorbed into the forces and allowed to serve for an additional 15 years after a second round of screening. It has also said that Agniveers will be absorbed on priority in other central security forces and be eligible for government jobs such as in the railways.
But some veterans raised concerns about the combat-readiness of the new recruits, their levels of motivation, and whether the prospect of a short tenure will make them risk averse.
Union home Minister Amit Shah and Army chief Gen Manoj Pande were among those who stepped in to assuage concerns. The Army chief said the government’s decision to raise the upper age limit to 23 years from 21 under the scheme in 2022 will provide an opportunity to youths
who were preparing to join the force but couldn’t in the last two years. The Centre’s decision to increase the upper age limit will benefit a large number of youth, Shah said.
But the protests spread, seemingly uncontrolled, with crowds squatting on tracks and highways, pelting stones and vandalising public property to vent their anger resulting in losses worth many crores of rupees. At least four trains were set on fire, two in Bihar, one in Uttar Pradesh and one in Telangana.
In Bihar, a mob attacked the home of BJP leader and deputy CM Renu Devi in Patna. In Secunderabad, a parcel coach of a passenger train was set ablaze by a crowd of about 300-350. One person was fatally injured when police fired in the air to disperse protesters on the rampage at the Secunderabad station. Confirming the death, a senior official of the South Central Railway told PTI the firing was done by Railway Protection Force (RPF).
The injured are being treated in the state-run Gandhi Hospital.
In Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia town, youths raised slogans and set an empty train on fire and vandalised a few other trains, prompting police to lathicharge them.
Protests also erupted in Varanasi, Firozabad and Amethi, causing damage to government buses and other symbols of public property.
In Madhya Pradesh’s Indore, hundreds gathered on tracks and hurl stones. About 15 protesters were arrested. In Haryana, youths burnt tyres and blocked rail tracks, officials said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi cited schemes such as GST, noteban, farm laws and now Agnipath and said they were projected to be for the welfare of the people but were rejected by the citizens.
“The prime minister does not understand what the people of the country want, as he cannot hear anything except the voice of his ‘friends’,” Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi.