The protests against the newly-introduced Agnipath scheme for military recruitment in India have raged on for the second day, with several army aspirants slamming the decision of the central government. In the midst of this violence, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has also issued his opinion on the row.
Rahul Gandhi has slammed the Agnipath scheme introduced by the BJP government, and has hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the new army recruitment scheme, saying that the PM “only listens to the voices of his friends.”
Tweeting in Hindi, the former Congress president wrote, “Agnipath - youth rejected. Farm laws - farmers rejected. Noteban - economists rejected. GST - traders rejected. The prime minister does not understand what the people of the country want, as he cannot hear anything except the voice of his 'friends'.”
This comes just a day after the government, after receiving a massive public backlash, raised the upper age limit to 23 years from 21 years for recruitment under 'Agnipath'. This move by the Centre came after violence erupted in seven states over the specifications of the recruitment plan.
Several opposition leaders have hit out at the government over the introduction of the Agnipath scheme in the army recruitment plan, saying that this will raise unemployment among the youths of India, and will also lead to the wastage of training funds.
Earlier, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also urged PM Modi to withdraw the scheme after nationwide outrage by army aspirants. She urged the prime minister on social media to withdraw the scheme over the next 24 hours.
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Tweeting in Hindi, Gandhi said, “This means that the plan has been imposed on the youth in a hurry. Narendra Modi Ji, please withdraw the scheme immediately.”
The protests over the Agnipath scheme turned violent on Thursday, with incidents of stone-pelting, destruction of property, and arson reported from several states. Internet services have been suspended and Section 144 has been imposed in several Indian cities.
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