Trains set ablaze in Ballia, Secunderabad as protests over Agnipath scheme spread to more states

Angry youth continued to agitate against the recruitment scheme in Bihar for the second day. There were also reports of violence from Varanasi, Mathura, Firozabad and Jaunpur.

Protesters set a train boogie on fire at Secunderabad Railway station in Hyderabad on 17 June 2022 | Photo: Rishika Sadam

New Delhi: The agitation over the Central government’s Agnipath Recruitment Scheme continued unabated Friday with protests spreading to Uttar Pradesh and Telangana, a day after a train coach was set on fire at a Bihar station and roads blocked in Jaipur.

Protesters set ablaze bogies in Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia and Secunderabad in Telangana.

As the day progressed, protests turned violent at the Secunderabad railway station, with police resorting to lathi-charge to control the angry youth. A few of the protesters were injured, while one is in a critical condition.

Earlier in the day, hundreds of protesters vandalised property at the station, including stalls and shops. A few reportedly damaged buses outside the station. Around 200 policemen have been deployed to guard the station.   

A total of 200 train services have been affected due to the ongoing agitation. A total of 35 train services were cancelled while 13 have been short terminated across the country, according to news agency ANI .

Violence in Uttar Pradesh

In Uttar Pradesh, violence was reported from the Ballia and Varanasi districts with angry agitators setting on fire a coach of the Sealdah Express in Ballia.

Footage also emerged of protesters vandalising the train at the Ballia model railway station early Friday morning. Ballia District Magistrate Soumya Aggarwal said some of them tried to hurl stones but the attempt was scuttled.

In Varanasi — the Lok Sabha constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi — youth were seen doing push-ups on railway tracks as agitated protesters raised slogans against the Centre. Prperty at the Varanasi Cantt railway station was also damaged.

Videos in possession with ThePrint show masked youth breaking window panes and smashing seats inside the station.

Protests were also reported from Mathura, Firozabad and Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh.

Protests continue in Bihar

In Bihar, agitation continued for the second consecutive day, disrupting train schedules various districts, including Begusarai and Lakhisarai.

Violent protests had rocked Bihar, Rajasthan and Haryana on Thursday. Young men torched government vehicles in Haryana’s Palwal as well as in half a dozen districts including Gurugram over the reformed short-term employment scheme for the armed forces.

The authorities imposed prohibitory orders and suspended mobile services in Palwal. Mobile and SMS services were also suspended in the Ballabhgarh area of neighbouring Faridabad district.

Amid raging nationwide protests, the Centre had Thursday raised the age limit for the military recruitment scheme from 21 years to 23 years.

“Cognizant of the fact that it has not been possible to undertake the recruitment during the last two years, the Government has decided that a one-time waiver shall be granted for the proposed recruitment cycle for 2022,” the government had said.

(with inputs from Rishika Sadam in Hyderabad and Shikha Salaria in Lucknow)