The Deputy Chief of Bureau at Puthiya Thalaimurai, Ramesh Murugesan recently spread false information regarding the pension scheme of the Agniveer program, designed to recruit young soldiers for the Indian Army.
Deputy chief of Bureau of .@PTTVOnlineNews spreading absolute lies and misinformation. Will there be any action on this? pic.twitter.com/ua2O05MoDe
— Vishwatma 🇮🇳 (@HLKodo) October 23, 2023
On a Twitter post, Mr. Murugesan erroneously claimed that Akshay Lakshman, a soldier recruited under the Agniveer program who attained martyrdom, would not receive any pension benefits. His tweet read, “Akshay Lakshman is the soldier recruited under Agniveer and attained martyrdom, but, like his colleagues, he won’t get any pension aids.”
Rahul Gandhi also tweeted on the matter, saying, “A young man was martyred for the country – no gratuity, no other military facilities for his service, and no pension to his family in martyrdom. Agniveer is a plan to insult the heroes of India.”
सियाचिन में, अग्निवीर गवाते अक्षय लक्ष्मण की शहादत का समाचार बहुत दुखद है। उनके परिवार को मेरी गहरी संवेदनाएं।
एक युवा देश के लिए शहीद हो गया – सेवा के समय न ग्रेच्युटी न अन्य सैन्य सुविधाएं, और शहादत में परिवार को पेंशन तक नहीं।
अग्निवीर, भारत के वीरों के अपमान की योजना है! pic.twitter.com/8LcQpZR9f2
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 22, 2023
Mr. Gandhi’s statement sparked controversy and criticism from various quarters, including the Indian Army.
The Indian Army swiftly moved to clarify the situation and rectify the misinformation. In an official statement, they clarified that the emoluments due to Lakshman’s family, and to the next of kin of other Agniveers who die in the line of duty, will be given a substantial compensation. According to the Army’s official tweet, these emoluments included:
1. A non-contributory insurance sum amounting to ₹48 lakh.
2. Compensation of ₹44 lakh.
3. 30 percent of Seva Nidhi contributed by the Agniveer, with equal matching contribution by the government, and interest thereon.
4. Pay for the balance tenure from the date of death, till completion of four years, which was over ₹13 lakh.
5. Contributions of ₹8 lakh from the Armed Forces Battle Casualty Fund.
6. Immediate financial assistance of ₹30,000 from the Army Wives Welfare Association for the next of kin.
After the lies of the Puthiya Thalaimurai journalist was called out, he later deleted the tweet.
About Puthiya Thalaimurai
Tamil mainstream news outlet Puthiya Thalaimurai is known for peddling propaganda favourable to the DMK and Congress.
A senior correspondent belonging to one Puthiya Thalaimurai, was caught peddling fake news saying that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had refused to meet Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami citing budget consultation work.
Very recently, the Dravidianist media has been peddling anti-Israel rhetoric saying that the attack has been response to the “oppressive” Israeli occupation.
Despite ample video and photographic evidence of the barbarity unleashed by Hamas terrorists, a Puthiya Thalaimurai journalist Thamizhiniyan said “Though it is being said that this attack was done by the Hamas, Israel has been continuously for years committing excesses against Palestinians. This is what people who spoke said before.”
He also peddled borderline anti-Semitism saying that the attack on Israel has gained worldwide traction because Israelis (Jews) exist as power centres in many countries.
This impotent bssturds RSB media… pic.twitter.com/jUyFl8w68J
— Vishwatma 🇮🇳 (@HLKodo) October 7, 2023
The English outlet of Puthiya Thalaimurai – The Federal. The handle had shared a caricature with the backdrop of the “flying kiss” depicting two Hindus referring to the “Kama Sutra” book and coming to the conclusion that since it was absent in this particular text, it must be a repulsive Western concept.
Niranjan Kumar, who claims himself to be a “journalist” has been caught peddling fake news several times, maing unverified claims fanning north-south divide. During Operation Ganga, he claimed that at ‘South Indian’ students are allegedly being discriminated in the evacuation operation.
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