In region with strong martial tradition, Agniveer scheme had impact in electoral battle

Chandigarh, June 4

In a region that is seeped in martial tradition and contributes a significant chunk of manpower to the Armed Forces, the introduction of the Agniveer scheme for recruitment into the rank and file of the Armed Forces was among the factors affecting the outcome of the 2024 General Election.

Rolled out by the BJP-led NDA Government in June 2022, the Agniveer scheme, that entails colour service of four years for soldiers, 75 percent of whom would be put out to pasture with some financial dole-out. The scheme did not go down well with the defence community, which was of the opinion that not only did it downgrade the forces’ warfighting ability but was a raw deal for the soldiers as it put them at a huge disadvantage vis-à-vis not only uniformed personnel in the Central Armed Police Forces but also other government employees.

Over three lakh serving personnel in the Three Services belong to the states of Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. The combined strength of registered ex-servicemen in these states is about 6.20 lakh, in addition to which are members of their families who too would be on the electoral roll.

This has now become a serious concern among ex-servicemen in a state that is among the top contributors of manpower to the armed forces and also has the second highest population of ex-servicemen amongst all states. According to defence sources, there are about 1.2 lakh serving personnel belonging to Punjab, with another about 3.27 lakh registered ex-servicemen.

“Residents in rural areas of Punjab that are the prime recruiting ground, including village elders, had conveyed a strong sentiment against the Agniveer scheme because of post-release uncertainty and limited employment opportunities,” Brig KS Kahlon (retd), state president of the All India Defence Brotherhood and a former director, defence services welfare, said.

“The outcome of the electoral battle was strongly impacted by issues such as no statues of ex-servicemen or certain facilities for Agniveers and no assured employment after release,” he said. “Further, different service conditions and remuneration between Agniveers and regular soldiers is discriminatory and driving a wedge between the two, which is not healthy,” he added. Also at stake is the prestige and status that soldiers enjoyed.

In Himachal Pradesh, the issue too appears to have made a dent into the BJP vote bank as despite winning all four Lok Sabha seats in Himachal, the victory margins of the candidates have been reduced to even less than half of their 2019 win.

Once referred to as ‘money order economy’ due to large number of people serving in the Armed Forces, who would send back money to their families, the recruitment of Agniveers for a period of four years with an uncertain future, has hit BJP especially in Hamirpur, Una, Bilaspur, Kangra and Mandi, where there is a high concentration of ex-servicemen. The Congress had raised the Agniveer issue vociferously.

Like other associations of retired faujis, Ranjit Singh Katoch of the Indian Ex-Services League, Palampur, expressed concern over the possibility of the quality of soldiers getting compromised due to the scheme.

In Hamirpur Lok Sabha constituency, the number of serving soldiers and officers is about 22,000 while there are 31,141 retired faujis. BJP’s Anurag Thakur’s lead came down from 3.99 lakh in 209 to 1.82 lakh and in Kangra from 4.77 lakh in 2019 to 2.51 lakh.

As such the fauji vote in Kangra and Hamirpur could have impacted the poll results. With Kangra parliamentary seat having 68,943 ex-servicemen besides over 25,000 serving soldiers, BJP too was apprehensive about the adverse impact of Agniveer scheme, which is why a video of Home Minister Amit Shah was released to dispel Congress propaganda.

In Haryana, the introduction of the Agniveer scheme for recruitment into the Armed Forces proved a crucial factor in the Lok Sabha elections. The state faces a tough challenge in terms of unemployment and a big chunk of its youths used to join the Army till recently.

However, after the introduction of the Agniveer scheme during the tenure of the BJP regime, s significant portion of the youth of Haryana seem to have lost interest in military service. The local youth as well as elderly residents feel that military service has been robbed of its honour and reduced it to a temporary job.

The Congress leaders as well as the party’s candidates raked up the issue at their rallies and public meetings. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi announced at a rally in Charkhi Dadri district of Haryana that the Agniveer scheme would be scrapped if their party comes to power.

As per political analysts, people’s resentment against the Agniveer issue was one of the major factors which benefited the Congress candidates and worked against the BJP party.