NEW DELHI (TIP): Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on July 3 alleged that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh “lied” in Parliament about the issue of compensation to families of martyred Agniveers and demanded an apology for it. The Army on Wednesday refuted Gandhi’s claim, stating that the family of the Agniveer had been paid Rs 98 lakh.
The Congress leader also shared a video on X purportedly of the father of a deceased Agniveer who stated that Rajnath Singh had claimed that Rs 1 crore compensation had been given to the next of kin of martyred Agniveers but no such assistance was received by his family.
Sharing the video message posted by her brother, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also accused the BJP of “insulting the sacrifice of the families” who gave up their sons for the country In his video, Rahul Gandhi said that he had stated in his speech in Parliament that the protection of truth is the basis of every religion.
“In reply, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, before Lord Shiva’s photo, lied to the country, its armed forces and Agniveers about compensation,” Gandhi said in the video.
He then referred to the purported statement by the father of an Agniveer martyr Ajay Singh.
Ajay Singh’s father said that Rajnath Singh made the statement that families of martyrs have been given Rs 1 crore compensation but no such assistance had been received by his family.
“Rahul Gandhi is raising our voice in Parliament that families of martyrs must get all necessary help. Agniveer recruitment must stop and regular recruitment should be reinstated,” he said. (PTI)