MP: Protests against Agnipath scheme in Gwalior, Indore

Protests broke out against the newly-unveiled Agnipath scheme of the Union government for recruitment in the defence forces in Gwalior and Indore in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday, police said.As protesters pelted stones and set shops on fire near a railway station in Gwalior, train operations were affected for some time.In Indore, nearly 150 youths protested against the Agnipath scheme.

Protests broke out against the newly-unveiled Agnipath scheme of the Union government for recruitment in the defence forces in Gwalior and Indore in Madhya Pradesh on Thursday, police said.

As protesters pelted stones and set shops on fire near a railway station in Gwalior, train operations were affected for some time.

In Indore, nearly 150 youths protested against the Agnipath scheme. A group of young men blocked a road at a busy intersection in Gwalior's Gola Ka Mandir area and burned an effigy, said Superintendent of Police Amit Sanghi.

The protesters then entered the Birla Nagar railway station and damaged some benches and a few shops, he said.

They later moved towards Gwalior station, but as police were present in strength there, they could not do much damage, the SP said.

The protesters pelted stones at a train and then began to gather in Padav area, he added.

Police used baton-charge and fired tear-gas shells, and now the situation was under control, the SP said. Nobody was injured during the protests, and police will identify those who indulged in violence from video footage, Sanghi said.

In Indore, nearly 150 young men, holding the tricolour in their hands, staged a protest at Marimata Square, demanding rollback of the Agnipath scheme.

Later they submitted a memorandum of their demand to city officials. “A member of the Lok Sabha, by being MP for five years, is eligible for life-long pension, but under the Agnipath scheme there is no such provision for those joining the Army,'' said one of the protesters.

Protests against the Agnipath scheme were witnessed in many states on Thursday, including Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. PTI COR HWP MAS KRK KRK