New Delhi: Ex-serviceman Ram Kishan Grewal allegedly committed suicide at the Jantar Mantar in Delhi over the delay in implementation of the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme.
Ex-serviceman Ram Kishan Grewal committed suicide by consuming poison at Delhi's Jantar Mantar area over the delay in implementation of the OROP.
He consumed poison last afternoon.
However, the cause behind Grewal's suicide is yet to be ascertained.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will be visiting Grewal's family in Haryana's Bhiwani later in the day.
Dubbing the incident as 'unfortunate', Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Commando Surinder Singh alleged that the BJP-led NDA Government at the Centre was indulging in politics over the Indian Army.
"A very unfortunate incident has taken place with this family. For the last one day, Grewal and 50 other ex-servicemen were sitting on strike. They wanted to present their memorandum to the Defence Minister. He had to wait for two days for the Defence Minister. When he was going to meet him, he faced many hurdles. In his memorandum he wrote that he is sacrificing his life for the nation and for the soldiers," he told the media.
Singh further said the salary that the soldiers get is not enough for living.
"On one hand, the government is doing politics over the Indian Army and on the other hand, the soldiers are forced to commit suicide today. The salary that a soldier gets is not enough for living. I condemn this incident," said Singh.
The AAP leader also used the occasion to target Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and accused the latter of indulging in petty political gains over the sacrifice of soldiers.
"I want to tell the Defence Minister to wake up...you are the Defence Minister of the nation...you do politics in the name of the soldiers. You try to take votes in the name of the soldiers. You don't even meet the soldiers. The soldiers have to commit suicide to even present a memorandum," said Singh.
"Today, the entire nation and all the ex-servicemen are standing with the family. His sacrifice won't go in vain. We will meet with the Defence Minister with this demand," he added.
Grewal's son Jaswant urged the Modi Government to look into the matter.
"My father sacrificed for the nation. He was demanding the One Rank, One Pension. The Modi Government should think about this," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while celebrating the Diwali with the army and ITBP personnel in Sumdo, Kinnaur, had said that the first instalment of nearly Rs. 5,500 crore has been paid for implementing the OROP scheme.
The Prime Minister also asserted that he has "fulfilled the promise" which he made to ex-servicemen on the issue that has been hanging fire for the last 40 years.
OROP scheme has been a long-standing demand of nearly three-million ex-servicemen and war widows in the country.
It seeks to ensure that a uniform pension is paid to defence personnel, who retire at the same rank with the same length of service irrespective of their date of retirement.
It is Jameendarigiri that is going on in this country as mentioned in one of the blogs. The babus pay themselves sumptuously and the netas look other-way. Shame on our netas and the people who elected them to power. A soldier is required in times of natural calamities, to thwart the terrorist attacks, to keep the enemies of our mother land at bay at all times and to police the nation when other security forces fail, still he is used and thrown out as a cheapest expendable material. His services were used in his prime of his youth and on his retirement, at his most important part of life he is left off to fend himself with a merge pension which is less than that of a lowest rung CG employee's pay. His family is sent on roads if he gives his life for the nation with least concern. The recent OROP movement showed the nation the way they behave even when insulted, they are the only gentlemen with patience in this country. Celebrating a festival at a remote corner with a few soldiers will not cheer them, mere greeting bestowed occasionally as lip service doesn't give solace to a family financially burdened. Give a soldier a decent pension be it regular pension, or causality pension unasked at a rate that is better than the current one which is 50%. Remembering a soldier occasionally shows the short sighted selfishness of the people of this country. It is time to give respect and financial security to the soldier, if the nation pays the same peanuts, then the future Army will be only of monkeys. Now a soldier veteran took an unprecedented action to end his life which is a blot on Mr Modi's government which boasts about fulfilling the OROP in full, though it is totally diluted.
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