Delhi HC said Agnipath Scheme is voluntary and those who have problem should not join.
On Monday, Delhi High Court adressed the petitioners who have challenged the Agnipath Scheme. Addressing to those petitioners Delhi HC said Agnipath is a voluntary scheme and those who have problems with it should not join.
What was Petioners Take on Agnipath?
Advocate Kumud Lata Das, who was representing one of the petitioners, Harsh Ajay Singh, said that after recruiting under the scheme, the volunteers will have life insurance of Rs 48 lakh in case of contingency, which is much lower than the amount for already-serving defence personnel.
Advocate Das also added that if the Agnipath service had been for five years, then these Agniveers would have been entitled to gratuity.
Furthermore, advocate Das stated that after four years of service, only 25% of the agniveers will be retained in the force, and there is no fixed backup plan for the remaining 75% of the agniveers.
Another petitioner, a retired army officer who is currently practising law, stated that authorities should reconsider the Agnipath scheme. His argument was that six months of training is insufficient; it is a very short time, and getting trained in such a short time is difficult.
He also claimed that the authorities would be compromising national security and the quality of personnel with this scheme.
Several other petitioners also challenged the center’s Agnipath Scheme.
HC’s Reply To Petitioners
Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad were heading the bench, and they replied to each and every petitioner. The bench said the Agnipath Scheme has been framed by experts in the Army, Navy, and Air Force, and judges were not military experts.
Referring to Colonel Amit Kumar (retd), who made the claim that six months of training is not enough, In reply to him, Justice Prasad said that if there is a problem, “don’t join.” The Colonel Amit Kumar (retd) said, “Is it an answer, milord, ‘don’t join’?” The judge replied, “Yes.”
In response to the judge’s request for clarity from the Center, additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati said she would seek advice on this issue and inform the court on the next hearing date on December 14.
