New Delhi/IBNS: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has reiterated his party's demand for the scrapping of Agnipath after Prime Minister Narendra Modi slammed the Opposition over its alleged politics centred on the scheme.

In a long post on X, Kharge said the Prime Minister did "petty politics" while speaking on the Kargil Vijay Diwas.

Modi wrote, "It is very unfortunate and deplorable that Prime Minister @narendramodiji is doing petty politics even on occasions like paying tribute to martyrs on Kargil Vijay Diwas. No Prime Minister has ever done this before.

"Modi ji is saying that his government implemented the Agnipath scheme at the behest of the Army, this is a blatant lie and an unforgivable insult to our valiant Armed Forces. Modi ji, it is you who are spreading LIES!"

In further attack on the Prime Minister, the Congress president wrote, " Agniveers do not get any pension, no gratuity, no family pension, no liberalized family pension and no education allowance for their children.

"Modi ji, 15 Agniveers have been martyred so far. At least respect their martyrdom. There is a lot of anger and strong opposition among the youth of the country regarding Agniveer! Congress party's demand is consistent-the Agnipath Scheme should be scrapped!"
Backing his government's Agnipath amid controversy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the scheme launched by his government aims to keep the Army fit for the war.

Modi made the remark while attending the Kargil Vijay Diwas at Kargil War Memorial in Dras, Ladakh.

The Prime Minister said, "The country has addressed this important dream through the Agnipath scheme. The aim of Agnipath is to rejuvenate the armies and keep them continually fit for war."

"Unfortunately, such a sensitive issue related to national security has been made a subject of politics by some people. Some people are playing politics of lies on this reform of the army for their personal interests. These are the same people who weakened our armed forces by committing scams worth thousands of crores of rupees in the armed forces.

"These are the same people who wanted the Air Force to never get modern fighter jets. These are the same people who had made preparations to lock the Tejas fighter plane in a box," he added.

Launched in 2022, Agnipath scheme provides for short-term induction of personnel into the armed forces with an aim to bring down the age profile of the three services. Those recruited under the scheme are called Agniveers.