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Congress panel meets President to discuss Agnipath, harassment of MPs by police
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and former union minister P Chidambaram told reporters after the meeting that they urged the government, through the President, to withdraw the Agnipath scheme.
A delegation from the Congress party met President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday seeking his intervention for the withdrawal of the new Agnipath scheme for recruiting soldiers, protesting the treatment of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi by the Enforcement Directorate, and pointing to the alleged harassment of its MPs by Delhi Police during protests last week.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and former union minister P Chidambaram told reporters after the meeting that they urged the government, through the President, to withdraw the Agnipath scheme and hold wider consultations in parliament, Parliamentary Committees and with all stakeholders.
Last week, the government announced the Agnipath scheme for induction of personnel 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. The government argues that the scheme will boost intake to 46,000 a year and has reserved 10% jobs in defence and paramilitary jobs, in addition to educational and financial incentives.
The party also sought the intervention of the President, who summons parliament sessions, for a time-bound inquiry into the Delhi Police’s alleged excesses while dealing with Congress MPs involved in a protest against Rahul Gandhi’s interrogation by ED, and requested that the matter be taken before the Parliament’s privileges committee.
Former Union minister P Chidambaram argued that the new recruitment model for the armed forces is “a dangerous scheme which will reduce the efficiency and effectiveness of our armed forces. We will have a six-month trained soldier serving for 3.5 years, with a sure knowledge that after four years he will be jobless,” he said.
“What kind of soldier will he be, what kind of a commitment he will have?”
Seeking a time-bound enquiry into the action of the Police at the Congress headquarters, Kharge said, “Our leaders were harassed and detained in police stations at far away places for 10 to 12 hours without any offence or case against them. Police have to inform the Lok Sabha speaker and Rajya Sabha chairman if MPs are detained for long hours.”
“Our rights have also been violated during our protests against ED action. Our MPs were beaten up, especially women MPs, and we brought this to the notice of the president and urged him to take action against the police personnel involved,” he added.
In its memorandum, the Congress said, “Through you, we are writing to register our strongest possible protest against the vicious and unprovoked attack unleashed on Congress MPs by the Delhi Police, which comes under the direct purview of the Union Home Ministry. We have met both the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha and submitted our petition. We request you to ensure that this petition is referred to the Privileges Committee immediately and the Committee begin a time-bound enquiry on breach of privilege.”
Apart from Kharge and Chidambaram, the seven member delegation comprised Congress’ Lok Sabha floor leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot and his Chhattisgarh counterpart Bhupesh Baghel, and Congres general secretaries Jairam Ramesh and K C Venugopal.
The President was also informed that over 50 party MPs, who took out a march from the Parliament House were stopped by the Delhi Police and not allowed to reach Raisina Hills.
Claiming the Police excess was a breach of privilege and a violation of Article 19 and Article 21, Chidambaram said, “There is absolutely no justification. We were staging a peaceful satyagrah. We had no stones in our hands, we had no lathis, we were not indulging in stone pelting, we were simply raising slogans and showing our solidarity with our leader. MPs and others have been assaulted and manhandled,” he said, adding that a woman MP was manhandled and her clothes, torn.
