Agnipath Scheme: Supreme Court To Hear Plea Tomorrow Challenging New Defence Recruitment Policy

A vacation bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and JK Maheshwari said that petitions against the scheme will be listed before an appropriate bench upon reopening of the apex court after summer vacation,

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Source : PTI File Photo

New Delhi: The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear pleas challenging the new recruitment scheme for defence forces, Agnipath, reported news agency ANI. As per a report by NDTV, a bench of Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice Surya Kant and Justice AS Bopanna will hear the plea challenging the new recruitment scheme. 

The apex court had earlier this month agreed to hear the pleas. A vacation bench of Justices Indira Banerjee and JK Maheshwari said that petitions against the recruitment scheme will be listed before an appropriate bench upon reopening of the apex court after summer vacation, news agency PTI reported.

The Union Government had last month announced the Agnipath scheme for recruitment into defence forces under which youths between the ages of 17-and-a-half and 21 years would be inducted into the armed forces for a four-year tenure, while 25 per cent of them will be subsequently inducted for regular service. 

The Supreme Court will hear pleas challenging the Agnipath recruitment scheme for defence forces tomorrow pic.twitter.com/3rixONnFXH

— ANI (@ANI) July 18, 2022

On June 21, the Centre had filed a caveat application in the Supreme Court urging it to hear the government in the petitions filed before it challenging the 'Agnipath' recruitment scheme for defence forces.

A Caveat application is filed by a litigant to ensure that no adverse order is passed against him or her without being heard.

The PIL seeking quashing of the Centre's notification for the Agnipath Scheme was filed by advocate ML Sharma stating that the scheme was “illegal and unconstitutional”, news agency ANI had reported. 

"Quash the notification/ press note dated June 14, issued by the Defense Ministry being illegal, unconstitutional and void ab-initio and ultra vires to the Constitution of India in the interest of justice," the PIL stated.