Saturday, 30 March 2024 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Bharatiya Janata Party has accused the Congress of spreading confusion regarding the Agnipath scheme. The BJP State spokesman Suresh Joshi said that under Congress governments, the news of a soldier attaining martyrdom was sent on a 25 paise postcard along with a black blanket and a box. After having humiliated the soldiers in such a way and losing the moral right to question on issues related to the armed forces, the Congress is now spreading confusion on Agnipath scheme while the government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi is taking this scheme forward for a stronger army and a prosperous nation. The BJP honoured soldiers by making major general (retd) BC Khanduri the chief minister and the son of a soldier, chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is today working hard to develop the State, he said.
Responding to allegations levelled by the Congress after Defence minister Rajnath Singh’s remarks that the government was ready to rectify if there were any drawbacks in the Agnipath scheme, Joshi said that the Congress does not have the moral right to raise questions on issues related to the armed forces. “The Congress governments used to inform family members of the martyrdom of a soldier on a 25 paise postcard along with a black blanket and a box. Congress governments insulted the martyrdom of the nation’s brave soldiers in this way for five decades after independence. The nation has also seen the time when thousands of hectares of land was left for enemies in strategically important border regions. There was no infrastructural development along the borders and conditions were created for preventable deaths of soldiers due to the lack of modern weapons and facilities. We also saw a Defence minister from the Congress who had acknowledged in the parliament that strategically important projects were not taken forward along the borders as part of a strategy to avoid direct confrontation with the enemy nation. The government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee started sending the bodies of martyred soldiers respectfully to their homes during the Kargil war. The government also provided financial assistance to the bereaved families and fulfilled their requirements. The BJP government implemented the One Rank One Pension which had been pending for decades. Our government provided modern weapons and equipment to also protect the lives of our soldiers,” Joshi said.
The BJP State spokesman said that when it comes to the Agnipath scheme, PM Modi had implemented it in national interest after consultations with various armed forces officers and defence experts. This scheme based on expert advice and global experiences was implemented for building an empowered army and the best soldiers, and is going to lay the foundations for a powerful India. The Congress and other opposition parties who have been entangled in the calculations of vote bank politics will find it difficult to understand this scheme which is aimed at achieving the dream of empowered services and a prosperous nation, Joshi added.
