NEW DELHI: Scores of youths protested against the Central government at the Jantar Mantar here on Thursday demanding recruitment of those selected in the defence forces prior to the Agnipath scheme's introduction. The protest was held under the banner of the AICC ex-servicemen department.
"About 1.5 lakh youths, who had been selected for recruitment in the defence forces prior to the introduction of the Agnipath scheme, are awaiting their joining so far. To join the services, they had completed all formalities and qualified for the final selection. We had been requesting Prime Minister Narendra Modi to allow these youths to join the forces," ex-servicemen department of the AICC, Colonel (Retd.) Rohit Chaudhry said during the protest at the Jantar Mantar.
He said the country needs a permanent army instead of a "contractual army" for four years under the Agnipath scheme. "The western border is around 1,400 kilometres, we share 3,800 kilometres of border with China and 6,500 kilometres of coastline with other countries. We need permanent force to defend our borders," Chaudhry said.
He said that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' understood the pain of these 1.5 lakh youth, who are waiting for their joining and even had words with them in Delhi.
"We have decided if the Congress government comes to power in 2024, we will cancel this scheme at the earliest, ensuring jobs in the force to these 1.5 lakh youth," he added.