Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has once again questioned the Centre over the compensation claims made by the family of Agniveer Ajay Kumar, who was killed in a landmine blast near the Line of Control in Rajouri, Jammu and Kashmir, on January 18.
The 23-year-old's family claims they haven't received any government compensation.
Rahul Gandhi shared a video on X featuring Ajay Kumar's father, who stated the family received ₹50 lakh from a private bank's insurance and ₹48 lakh from the Army Group Insurance Fund.
Contradicting these claims, the Indian Army clarified that the family has already received ₹98.39 lakh and that the total compensation will amount to approximately ₹1.65 crore.
This statement came in response to the video shared by the Rae Bareli MP.
In his post on X, Gandhi highlighted the distinction between 'compensation' and 'insurance,' arguing that the family has only received payments from insurance and not from the government.
He emphasized that every martyr's family deserves respect and accused the Modi government of discrimination. "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 stated.
Rahul Gandhi argued that there are two types of martyrs in India—normal jawans and Agniveers—highlighting the disparities in their posthumous benefits.
"Both would be martyred but one would get the status of a martyr while the other would not. One would get a pension, while the other would not. One would get canteen (facility), the other would not. If someone has laid down his or her life for the country, they should be honoured," the former Congress chief said.
Ajay Kumar's father, in the video, confirmed that no money had been received from the central government and called for facilities, a pension, and a canteen card for his family.
He mentioned that Rajnath Singh had promised ₹1 crore to martyrs' families, which they have not received.
The Congress has urged the government to release a "white paper" on the Agnipath scheme, which was launched in 2022 to induct personnel into the armed forces for short-term service, aiming to reduce the age profile of the services. Those recruited under this scheme are known as Agniveers.