At the dispensation, the Congress leader said the government’s attitude is to legislate first and discuss later.
Congress leader Sachin Pilot on June 19 urged the government not to be “stubborn” and immediately withdraw the new military recruiting program Agnipath for wider consultation to avoid a repeat of the farm laws delivery. He also claimed that the country had been kept “perpetually on a boil” in recent years and that a culmination of factors such as the rejection of the Agnipath scheme, unemployment, and economic and agricultural distress had led to the “serious backlash” of the youth.
In an interview with PTI, Mr . Pilot said the government must stop blaming the opposition for the youth’s “real” complaint and avoid the blame game it had indulged in during the farm law agitation. “This has nothing to do with the opposition. It is a genuine complaint from young people. They (government) should listen to their voices and not be stubborn in their decision-making, revision, and review, but for now, they should withdraw it (plan),” said Mr . Pilot, who is himself a captain in the Territorial Army.
“They (the government) have taken a year and a lot of political coercion to repeal the agricultural laws. This is even more serious, it is about the future of the youth, and they must stop this policy immediately,” said the former minister of the government. Union. said. This government is known for not listening to anyone, he said, adding that the Center should act as a guardian of the country and “not be stubborn”.
Mr. Pilot claimed that in recent years it had been found that the country has been “deliberately kept on a permanent boil” and that there is bitterness in society as well as negativity in the atmosphere with issues of communities, castes, regions, and religions on the come to the fore. “These (protesting) youth are all from rural areas. They see their families in prolonged financial stress and debt. Then you have inflation, unemployment, it leads to insecurity and a good chance to serve in the armed forces, which you also so it’s a culmination of all those issues that led to the serious backlash we’re seeing,” said Mr. Pilot.
At the dispensation, the Congress leader said it is the government’s stance to legislate first and discuss it later. What happened to the Agnipath plan was similar to how it introduced the three farm laws that supposedly benefit the w farming community. It took a year of continued agitation from farmers to repeal agricultural laws, he noted. Likewise, the government came into this situation with the Agnipath scheme, and then in a “knee-shock” response after announcing the original plan, it has come up with a slew of changes, he said.
All these reactions indicate that the policy was not well thought out, according to Mr Pilot. “We must not forget who are the people who go for the armed forces. They are mainly farming families, people from rural areas, and children from humble backgrounds. Countless young people aspire not only to get a job but also to the olive green uniform of the armed forces,” he said. “My concern is this: Young people will miss the opportunity to serve this country as patriots and soldiers. The problem has become more serious as acute unemployment is at an all-time high.
“So people feel cheated, and the recruitment policies of the entire armed forces have changed dramatically, which will impact the functionality, effectiveness, structure, and ecosystem in which platoons, units, and battalions operate,” said Mr. Pilot. Said. He argued that there should have been a pilot project and an impact study, and then perhaps a decision could have been made rather than drastically changing recruitment policies. Asked about the violent protests and whether they would continue until the government takes back the Agnipath plan, Mr. Pilot said Congress has called on young people not to get violent and not take the law into their own hands as it damages public property. It will be good. No purpose.
“They can protest peacefully; they have the right to protest; they are genuinely angry. We in the Congress party sympathize with the cause the young people are fighting for… We have made it clear that we agree with the feelings of the young people, and they must stop this policy immediately. They must not wait,” said Mr Pilot. “I would urge the government to avoid further bitterness and confrontation, to stop and reconsider this policy,” he said. Pointing to the problems with the scheme, Mr. Pilot said four years of service and specialist training would be needed after the six months, so adequate time under the system would be extremely limited.
Mr . Pilot also argued that there are two active borders with Pakistan and China and asked whether it would be wise to take a gamble on the preparedness and effectiveness of the armed forces at this crucial moment. He said there had been a lack of consultation and discussion with some ad hoc policy announcements and enforcement regarding government policy formulation. “I don’t think imposing your thoughts and policies on 1.3 billion people is workable,” said Mr Pilot. The Center announced several incentives on Saturday, including reserving 10% job vacancies in the Department of Defense and paramilitary forces for Agnipath retirees, as violent protests raged against the new military recruiting program in many states, and opposition parties mounted pressure to back it up. To turn.
