Northeast Desk, 27th July: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has announced the state government’s commitment to absorb most Agniveers from Assam into the Assam Police, in support of the Agnipath Scheme.
In a post on the microblogging site X, Sarma emphasized Assam’s dedication to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of modernizing the Indian Army. He criticized the Opposition for attempting to undermine the scheme, stating, “Bharat will ensure Opposition’s mission – to weaken the Indian Army by spreading lies on #AgnipathScheme – is defeated.”
Sarma reaffirmed Assam’s support for the Agnipath Scheme, highlighting the proactive steps the state is taking to ensure the welfare of Agniveers, thereby enhancing both state security and national defense modernization.
On July 26, during the Kargil Vijay Diwas commemorations, the Congress party criticized Prime Minister Modi’s remarks about the Agnipath Scheme. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge condemned the Prime Minister for what he described as “petty politics” on a solemn occasion. “It is very unfortunate and deplorable that PM Narendra Modi-ji is doing petty politics even on occasions like paying tribute to martyrs on Kargil Vijay Diwas. No Prime Minister has ever done this before,” Kharge stated.
During his visit to the Kargil War Memorial in Dras, PM Modi defended the Agnipath Scheme and accused the Opposition of politicizing national security. “The Agnipath scheme is also an example of the necessary reforms done by the Army… Unfortunately, some people have made such a sensitive issue related to national security a subject of politics. These are the same people who weakened our Army by committing scams worth thousands of crores,” Modi said.
Kharge countered by accusing the PM of “spreading lies” and pointed out that former Army Chief General MM Naravane had stated that 75% of recruits were to be kept permanently, contrary to the implementation of the scheme which Kharge claimed was done forcibly and did not align with initial plans.
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