New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday blamed PM Modi’s ‘clean chit’ to China for the border row in eastern Ladakh that has festered since 2020 and led to the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15, 2023, in which 20 Indian Army soldiers lost their lives.
“PM Modi’s ‘clean chit’ to China saying no one had entered our territory was responsible for the Chinese border row that has been lingering on since April 2020. The Chinese incursion led to the death of 20 Indian soldiers in the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15. We pay homage to our brave soldiers and the brave Indian Army. The PM must explain why he has not uttered the name of China over the past years, why has he not shown red eyes to China and why has he not allowed the Army to take action in the eastern Ladakh border row,” Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate alleged.
The Congress leader's comment came on a day the country mourned the death of 20 Indian Army soldiers, who died in the bloody clashes with the Chinese People’s Liberation Army troops in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh, along the Line of Actual Control, the de facto border between the two countries.
The Chinese incursion has continued along the LAC in eastern Ladakh since April 2020 despite several rounds of talks between the senior army commanders of the two sides. The border row has also resulted in the India-China relations touching a new low and forced India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to proclaim that the bilateral ties were “abnormal” and that “peace on the border was must before the bilateral relations could become normal.”
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The Congress, which has been targeting the PM over the Chinese incursions over the past years, paid tributes to the dead soldiers. “The entire country is indebted to the 20 soldiers, who made the supreme sacrifice for the country three years ago. We bow to them. Their families as well as the country want to know why the PM spoke a lie that no one had entered our territory. During the past three years, the PLA has been speaking the same language that our PM spoke,” Shrinate said.
“We should have taught a lesson to the PLA over the past three years. Instead, China has become our biggest trade partner and our imports have increased. When PM Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping came face to face for the first time after the Galwan clashes, PM Modi, who was wearing a red shirt forgot to show him the red eyes, and was instead greeting the Chinese leader. How dare China to do such a thing to our brave soldiers simply because our PM was enjoying a swing with Xi Jinping in Ahmedabad," she said.
Also read: China lost 42 soldiers in Galwan Valley clash, not 4: Report
"The bravery of the Army is such that they dissected Pakistan into two in 1971. We bow to them, but why are the hands of the Army tied? India has lost 26 out of 65 patrolling points along the LAC over the past three years, but no reaction from the government. The US ambassador says India avoids poking China in the eye. Why is there no status quo ante along the LAC? The families of the soldiers killed and the country asks this question till when the PM would remain silent,” she said.
The Congress leader also targeted External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, who had recently said during an interview that India could not pick up a fight with China as it was a bigger economy. “Till when will our Foreign Minister keep saying we are a small economy and China is a big economy and therefore we can’t pick up a fight with them? If the Congress had thought the same, we would not have fought against the British before Independence. The government only tries to cover up the PM’s lies, but it will have to confront China. The PM would have to break his silence,” she added.
