Agniveer made labourers of soldiers, will end it: Rahul

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Mahendragarh in Haryana vowing to scrap the Agniveer military recruitment scheme if the I.N.D.I.A. bloc comes to power. He accused Modi of "turning Hindustan ke jawan into labourers" and criticised the scheme as being imposed by the Prime Minister's Office rather than the Army.

At his first election meeting in Haryana for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, Gandhi also condemned Modi's handling of farmers' issues. He claimed that the Modi government waived loans totaling Rs 16 lakh crore for 22 top industrialists but refused to waive farmers' debts, arguing that it would "spoil them."

"We had brought the land acquisition bill to protect farmers and give them due compensation, but the Modi government scrapped it. They brought three black farm laws, forcing farmers to take to the streets," Gandhi said.

Criticising the Agniveer scheme, Gandhi stated, "This is Modi's scheme, not the Army's scheme. The Army does not want it. This scheme has been framed by the PMO. When the I.N.D.I.A. bloc forms the government, we will chuck the Agniveer scheme in the dustbin, we will tear it up."

Gandhi further alleged that Modi’s brand image had deteriorated due to unfulfilled promises. "The Prime Minister had asked people to beat thalis and turn on mobile phone torches to ward off Covid-19 when hundreds of bodies were lying in the Ganga. They are now spreading hate in the country. But Haryana has always shown the path to the nation, be it farmers’ protests or other instances. They will try to divide you on religious and caste lines, but you have to stay united," he said.

He declared that there was a "Congress wave in Haryana" and expressed confidence in securing victory in the state. Highlighting the achievements of previous Congress governments, he mentioned the establishment of Gurgaon with proper planning, improved infrastructure providing jobs to youth, and a sports policy that led to international medals for Haryana's athletes.

Gandhi also accused the BJP of openly declaring its intent to "finish" the Constitution and scrap reservation. "Leave aside BJP, there is no power in the world that can finish this book," he said, holding a copy of the Constitution.
Congress general secretary Deepak Babaria, former chief minister B.S. Hooda, Haryana Congress chief Udai Bhan, party leaders Kiran Choudhary and Shruti Choudhary, and Bhiwani-Mahendragarh LS candidate Rao Dan Singh were also present at the rally.