Supreme Court to hear today pleas challenging Agnipath recruitment scheme

Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear pleas challenging Agnipath recruitment scheme. The top court bench comprising justices DY Chandrachud and AS Bopanna will hear a batch of pleas challenging the short-term recruitment in armed forces under the Agnipath scheme.

On July 4, advocate Kumud Lata had mentioned the petition on behalf of Harsh Ajay Singh, requesting for an urgent hearing. Another petitioner ML Sharma had questioned the validity of the Agnipath scheme.

The Centre had filed a caveat in top court on June 22, ahead of the registration of the first batch of ‘Agniveers’ and had urged the bench to hear before any action is taken on petitions challenging the defence recruitment scheme.

On June 14, the Centre had announced the Agnipath scheme for recruiting youths between 17.5 and 21 years into the armed forces for a term of four years. After completion of the term, the ‘Agniveers’ will get an opportunity to apply voluntarily for regular cadre. Based on merit and organisational requirement, up to 25 per cent of ‘Agniveers’ will be selected from that batch after another round of screening.

The scheme had triggered violent protests in several parts of the country. The Centre gave concessions like increasing the age limit to 23 for 2022. Several ministries and BJP-ruled states offered employment opportunities for ‘Agniveers’. The Centre defended the move saying that the concessions were pre-planned and were not affected by the protests.