The Congress leader had shared a video on X purportedly of the father of a deceased Agniveer who said that Rajnath Singh had claimed that Rs 1 crore compensation had been given to the next of kin of martyred Agniveers but no such assistance was received by his family.

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi Wednesday said that the family of a martyred Agniveer had received no financial assistance, an allegation countered by the Indian Army which stated that Ajay Kumar’s family had already been paid Rs 98.39 lakh and that the final settlement would be a total of around Rs 1.65 crore.

After Gandhi’s statement, the Indian Army put out a statement on X titled ‘Clarification on emoluments to Agniveer Ajay Kumar’, saying: “Certain posts on Social Media have brought out that compensation hasn’t been paid to the Next of Kin of Agniveer Ajay Kumar who lost his life in the line of duty.”

“Ex – Gratia and other benefits amounting to approximately 67 lakhs, as applicable according to the provisions of the Agniveer Scheme, will be paid on Final Account Settlement shortly post due Police verification.  The total amount will be Rs 1.65 Cr approximately. It is re-emphasised that emoluments due to a fallen hero are paid expeditiously to the Next of Kin of departed soldiers, including Agniveers,” said the statement.