Mumbai, Nov 26 (PTI) The mother of Agniveer Murali Naik, who was killed in cross-border shelling in Jammu & Kashmir during Operation Sindoor, has moved the Bombay High Court challenging the denial of benefits to which a regular soldier’s family is entitled.
The Agnipath scheme creates an “arbitrary” distinction between Agniveers and regular soldiers, claimed the plea filed by Naik’s mother Jyotibai Naik, questioning the “discriminatory” denial of full death benefits.
Murali Naik was killed on May 9 in Poonch when the Pakistan Army resorted to ceasefire violations, launching heavy artillery and mortar attacks, as India launched Operation Sindoor in the aftermath of Pahalgam terror attack.
The petition, filed through advocates Sandesh More, Hemant Ghadigaonkar and Hitendra Gandhi, said the Agniveers perform the same duties and face the same risks as regular soldiers, yet the families of Agniveers are denied long-term pensionary and welfare benefits.
“The Agnipath scheme introduced by the government expressly excludes Agniveers from post-service pension benefits and other long- term welfare entitlements normally available to regular soldiers,” the petition said.
As per the plea, the family of a martyred Agniveer gets an ex-gratia amount of around Rs one crore but are not given any regular family pension or any other benefits.
The petition sought directions to ensure equal posthumous benefits, including pensions, institutional recognition, and welfare measures for families of Agniveers who die in service.
It also sought a direction to the concerned authorities to consider the petitioner’s request for these benefits to be extended to her family.
As per the plea, Naik was recruited in the Indian Army in June 2023.
After his death, the petitioner sent letters to several authorities, requesting that her family be granted the same benefits as those given to the families of regular soldiers.
However, she was yet to receive any reply, claimed the petition.
The petition said while it is not challenging the validity of the Agnipath scheme in its entirety, it was “discriminatory” and violated the fundamental rights of citizens.
“The scheme created an arbitrary and unreasonable classification between Agniveers and regular soldiers without any intelligible differentia,” it said.
The petition is likely to come up in due course before a division bench of the high court. PTI SP KRK
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