"Compensation, Insurance Different": Rahul Gandhi On Agniveer Row

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has again raised questions over the claims by the family of Agniveer Ajay Kumar, who was killed in the line of duty, that they have not got any compensation. The 23-year-old was killed on January 18 in a landmine blast near the Line of Control in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir.

Mr Gandhi shared a video on X, purportedly of Ajay Kumar's father, who said his family got Rs 50 lakh as insurance from a private bank and Rs 48 lakh from the Army Group Insurance Fund.

The Indian Army has rejected claims on social media that compensation has not been paid to the next of kin of Agniveer Ajay Kumar, and said his family has already been given Rs 98.39 lakh of the due amount. The total amount will be Rs 1.65 crore approximately, the army said in the "clarification" that came after Mr Gandhi shared the video on the microblogging platform.

Mr Gandhi in the video said the family had not got compensation, or ex-gratia payment.

शहीद अग्निवीर अजय कुमार जी के परिवार को आज तक सरकार की ओर से कोई Compensation नहीं मिला है।

'Compensation' और 'Insurance' में फर्क होता है, शहीद के परिवार को सिर्फ बीमा कंपनी की ओर से भुगतान किया गया है।

सरकार की ओर से जो सहायता शहीद अजय कुमार के परिवार को मिलनी चाहिए थी वो... pic.twitter.com/FG99h72rhX

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 5, 2024

"The family of martyr Agniveer Ajay Kumar has not received any compensation from the government till date. There is a difference between 'compensation' and 'insurance'. The payment has been made to the family of the martyr only by the insurance company," Mr Gandhi said in a post in Hindi on X.

"The family of every martyr who sacrifices his or her life for the country should be respected but the Modi government is discriminating against them. No matter what the government says, this is a matter of national security and I will keep raising it," he said.

In the video, Ajay Kumar's father said his family had not received any money from the central government, and demanded facilities and pension. He also asked for a canteen card to be given to his family. "Rajnath Singh said that families of martyrs have been given Rs 1 crore. We haven't got that," he said.

The Congress on Thursday asked the government to bring out a "white paper" on the Agnipath scheme for short-term military recruitment.

Launched in 2022, the 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.