PM Modi defends 'Agnipath' scheme, Oppn accuses him of doing 'petty politics'

Amid demands from the Opposition and some of the ruling NDA allies for a review of the controversial ‘Agnipath’ military recruitment scheme, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday strongly defended it, saying the scheme is an example of necessary reforms undertaken by the Army.

He accused the opposition of playing politics over the recruitment process aimed at keeping the average age in armed forces young.

In his address on ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas’ here to mark the 25th anniversary of victory in Kargil war, PM Modi said some people were playing politics over a sensitive issue related to national security and rubbished claims that the ‘Agnipath’ scheme was launched to save pension money.

“The aim of ‘Agnipath’ is to make the forces young...The aim of ‘Agnipath’ is to keep the armies continuously fit for war,” he said.

“Unfortunately, such a sensitive issue related to national security has been made a subject of politics by some people. Some people are playing politics of lies for their personal interests even on this reform of the army,” he said.

“For decades, there have been discussions in Parliament and various committees on making the armed forces younger. The average age of Indian soldiers being higher than the global average has been a matter of concern,” he added.