Why has the family of ex-serviceman family been shifted: Congress asks Centre

Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala on Wednesday said the entire nation is ashamed at the way the family of the ex-serviceman is being treated by the Delhi Police, and asked the Centre why has the latter been shifted to an undisclosed location.

"The Whole country is ashamed at the way a martyr's family is being treated. BJP might be taking all the pain and agony of the family as drama, but this country doesn't think like this, because Prime Minister Modi had promised that he will provide OROP," Surjewala told ANI.

Surjewala sought an answer from the government behind the detention of the family of the ex-serviceman and asserted that the party will continue the fight for providing justice to the family.

"The family member of ex-serviceman has been shifted to some confidential place by the Delhi Police. The Delhi Police did this on the instruction of the BJP government. Where is the family right now and what crime they have committed? We will continue our fight for the family," he said.

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi was detained along with other Congress leaders as they moved to enter the Ram Manohar Lohia to meet the family members of the ex-serviceman, who allegedly committed suicide over the One Rank, One Pension (OROP) issue yesterday.

Meena told the media that leaders of various political parties must understand that hospital is not a place to hold demonstrations.

Seventy-year-old ex-serviceman Ram Kishan Grewal was protesting against anomalies in the OROP scheme. He allegedly committed suicide by consuming poison in the lawns behind Jawahar Bhawan in New Delhi on Tuesday night.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while celebrating the Diwali with the army and ITBP personnel in Sumdo, Kinnaur, had said that the first installment 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.