Initially under Agnipath Scheme likely to adjust 40,000 RSS/BJP extremist Hindu in Army for 4 years

By MD Mesha 

NEW DELHI: The Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government led by Prime Minister Narednra Modi has launched Agnipath Scheme to recruit thousand of young people into Army.

On Wednesday, the Vice Chief of Army Staff Lt General B S Raju told an Indian News Agency PTI that initially they are planning to recruit 25,000 young people between the age of 17 to 21 in the coming six months.

The new Scheme launched after the appointment of Lt Gen Manoj Pande  as Army Chief by PM Modi.

Gen. Pande is a RSS-influenced officer who was promoted to the highest position in the Indian Army despite defeat at LAC at hands of the Chinese.

RSS is a Hindu extremist organization influenced by Nazism while BJP is a political wing of the organization which is currently ruling in India.

Analysts believed Gen. Pande could strengthen the existing saffronization of the Indian Army. 

Former Indian Army Chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane who retired in April was hailing from Maharashtra the birthplace of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) leader Keshav Baliram Hedgewar considered the pioneer of RSS. On the other hand, the newly appointed Chief has family roots in Nagpur headquarters of RSS.

On Tuesday, Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said that the new scheme brought to strengthen India's security.

However, former Indian Army officers criticized the move and said this scheme has other motives.

“Adding troops under this scheme will be paradoxical: numbers will help in peacetime grey zone operations on LAC,” Pravin Sawhney, a former Indian military officer tweeted. 

He added posting these people at borders with China, the Indian military should prepare more body bags.

“#Agniveer I invite proposals from private military companies  to jointly raise private militias recruiting Agniveers (Contractual Soldiers) of Indian Military which could be used globally in various conflicts..these soldiers will have 4 years of military experience and training,” another Army veteran Ashok Kr Singh said.

He warned that such schemes will be common in four years’ time and you will find the Agniveers soldiers fighting in all conflicts globally..

However, senior officials in New Delhi have also worried by the new move of the Modi government and say this scheme will increase the saffronization of the Indian Army.

“I fear this is a planned move to adjust RSS extremists in Indian Army, they will train them, and then RSS/BJP will use these trained people for the killing of opponents and minorities,” a senior official told The South Asia Times on condition of anonymity.

Indian officials couldn’t express their views publically because of fear from Modi’sparty. 

Over 250 million Muslims in India also expressed deep concerns and said the real agenda is to have a loose army of saffron Hindutva driven RSS goons who can be used against Muslims and minorities whenever needed rather than using the regular army troops. 

Prominent Indian Muslim leader Asaduddin Owaisi said BJP wants to train these people to inflict violence into the Hindutva cauldron.

“Without the required planning, the only effect of the Tour of Duty model...is letting loose of hordes of young men trained to inflict violence into the Hindutva cauldron,” Owaisi wrote on Twitter.

He added that in recent violence In Jharkhand, 15 people were shot, 2 Muslim children martyred, while 6 bullets hit one's body.

“what is happening after all [in India],” he questioned. 

Currently, the Modi government has launched a countrywide operation against the Muslims and demolished the houses of those Muslims who participated in recent peaceful protestS against the BJP leaders who insulted the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). 

The situation in India is still tensed as thousand of Muslims are on the roads and demanding to arrest and hang BJP Spokersons Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal, who insulted to Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).