AMN / WEB DESK
The Congress on Tuesday sought a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the situation at the border saying Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s statement in Parliament on the Sino-India border clash in Tawang was “incomplete” and accused the Government of hiding the truth from the nation.
Congress spokesperson and deputy leader of the party in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi demanded that the Government should tell the truth. Gogoi and party media publicity chairman Pawan Khera accused the Centre of diplomatic failure with China, claiming that India has lost its pre-eminent position in Southeast Asia.
Rajya Sabha member Randeep Surjewala urged the Prime Minister to make a statement and hold a discussion over the issue in the Rajya Sabha. Similar unconfirmed reports of Chinese transgressions are coming from Doklam area, he said.
“Public interest demands that the PM make a statement in the House and apprise the nation of the Chinese transgressions into Indian territory across the LAC, since April 2020 till date,” Surjewala said.
The party leaders demanded that the Government should agree to a detailed discussion on the border situation and ties with China, alleging that Prime Minister Modi’s remarks made in June 2020 that “no one has entered Indian territory nor has anyone occupied its territory” has emboldened China to indulge in such misadventures.
“Why did Rajnath Singh give a statement so late, as the incident is of December 9? Why was this not given yesterday in Parliament? What are they hiding? This Government wants to hide the truth from the nation.”
“And our demand from day one has been to tell the truth to the nation,” Gogoi told reporters at a Press conference.
He said the Congress is concerned about the security of the nation and that is why it was asking questions to the Government. He alleged that whenever an issue of national security comes up, the “Prime Minister hides behind his Ministers”.
“The BJP Government is not able to protect the territorial integrity of our country. They do not have the time to think about the country except elections and doing communal politics,” he said, adding that we have to prepare a united strategy after taking everyone together but there is no time for it with this Government.
Khera said in 1962, as many as 165 MPs participated in the discussion on China when even our MPs criticised our Government then and Nehru ji listened. “But, look at this Government they attack us when we ask them questions.”
Former Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah termed as unfortunate the face-off between the armies of India and China in Arunachal Pradesh and said the two countries should work together to improve their relations.
Abdullah said the two countries should work together to improve their relations. “We are not able to have good relations with our neighbouring countries. Everyone knows the status of our relations with Pakistan but the relations with China are also not working out. China has not completely gone back from Ladakh and now there are reports of a face-off in Arunachal Pradesh,” Abdullah told the media.
“They (Centre) have only kept those (old) laws here which can be used to harass people. There is no (Public) Safety Act anywhere in the country…It is only in Jammu and Kashmir. I have said it earlier and I repeat when the National Conference Government comes, on the first day, this law will be repealed,” Abdullah told party workers at Dooru in Anantnag district.
“I remember the words of (PM Atal Bihari) Vajpayee who used to say ‘we can change friends but not neighbours’. We cannot change our neighbours but we can improve our relations with them,” Abdullah, who was a Minister of State for External Affairs in the Vajpayee Government, said. He said the onus also lies with China to improve its relations with India.