Our Correspondent / New Delhi
India’s former Defence Minister and Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav Wednesday asserted that India should be firm about giving protection to Sikkim as well as Bhutan.
Samajwadi Party MP Mulayam Singh Yadav raised the issue of ongoing standoff between India and China at Doklam in the Lok Sabha. He blamed the previous UPA govt for being soft on China.
Calling China India’s biggest enemy, Yadav claimed the neighbouring country is conspiring against India and is fully prepared to launch an attack on India.
Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, while briefing a Parliamentary panel on Tuesday, emphasised the fact that though China’s stand on the Doklam issue has been unusually aggressive and vocal but it should not be blown out of proportion.
His comments made it clear that India’s steps would be well-thought out and not taken in a haste.
The Foreign Secretary also added that New Delhi is using diplomatic channels to seek a solution to the issue. He said that India has maintained its position on the border as laid down in the 1895 Anglo-Chinese agreement.
Meanwhile, the US has also expressed concern over the ongoing stand-off.
On another front, highly placed sources have said that the Indian Army is at a far more advantageous position in Doklam than China and the situation is not as bad as the Chinese Media makes it out to be.
Army sources say China needs at least nine times the strength of Indian troops to have any impact and so far no red flags have been raised by the Indian army.
Indian troops had stopped the construction of a road by Chinese soldiers on June 16. Since then China and India have been engaged in a standoff in the Dokalam area in the Sikkim sector.