OROP row: Ex-servicemen resist eviction from Jantar Mantar

A group of ex-servicemen demanding “One Rank One Pension” Fridayresisted eviction from the protest site at Jantar Mantar here by Delhi Police and NDMC which were trying to clear the area in view of security concerns ahead of Independence Day.

“It is a New Delhi Municipal Council drive, assisted by police, where all the protestors are being evicted from Jantar Mantar for security goal before Independence Day”, Deputy Commissioner of Police Vijay Singh told IANS.

The Amethi MP denounced police action to evict protesters from Jantar Mantar earlier today.

It is being widely speculated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will announce the OROP, during his Independence Day speech from the Red Fort on Saturday.

The meeting took place after protesting ex-servicemen announced they would defer the agitation in poll-bound Bihar.

Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi on Friday reached Jantar Mantar in New Delhi to support the ex-servicemen in their case.

Government is looking at a “middle path” in resolving the “ticklish issue” of “One Rank One Pension” demand of ex-servicemen, officials sources said.

“It was already a sad thing that our former servicemen have been struggling for a long time”. They said that the denial of OROP is merely the last straw that has exhausted the veterans’ patience. “This is just an attempt to get rid of us, as they don’t have an answer to our demands”, United Front of Ex-Servicemen spokesperson Col. Anil Kaul (retd.) said. “Thus, the recent developments have not only triggered a process of politicisation of the Indian military, but also served to inflict grave damage on its morale and self-esteem”, the letter said.

The military veterans say they will wait till August 15 and if the government does not honour their demands they will step up their protests by staging more hunger strikes around 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.

Four former service chiefs has written to the president urging him to intervene in the issue of implementation of OROP as soon as possible.