Agniveers lower in rank to sepoys, must salute sepoys

Agniveer is a completely different cadre, and the four years that Agniveers serve with the Indian armed forces will not be counted as a regular duty when entering the Indian Army, Navy, or Air Force, the Central Government notified the Delhi High Court on Wednesday. Their service will not be considered part of regular service in the Armed forces.

It was suggested that joining the military after four years would be deemed a new recruiting.

The government's explanation for this is that after completing four years of basic training as an Agniveer, a person joins the army as a sepoy and receives far more advanced training.

In fact, according to the government, there won't be any sepoys who aren't Agniveers in 10 to 15 years.

Before a division bench consisting of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Aishwarya Bhati presented the argument.

A number of petitions against the recently introduced Agnipath plan for enlisting in the armed forces were being heard by the bench.

According to the Agnipath plan, young people will be enlisted for four years in the Indian Army. Only 25% of the chosen candidates will remain in the Indian Army after this time, while the remaining candidates would not be allowed to join the armed forces.

The implementation of the plan triggered numerous protests around the nation, some of which descended into violence. Additionally, a flurry of petitions was filed in other courts as a result of it.

The Court pressed the ASG on the issue of equal pay for equal work today, asking how, if an agniveer's responsibilities are identical to those of a sepoy, they can be paid less for the same job.

Bhati clarified that although their duties are similar, Agniveers are required to salute sepoys.