'Centre rolling red carpet for China': Congress claims 'deal' over FDIs amid disengagement

As the Centre started clearing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) proposals from China on a case-to-case basis after a 9 month-long freeze, Congress leader Manish Tewari mocked the disengagement process at the LAC and accused the BJP of 'rolling out the red carpet for the Chinese'.

Taking to Twitter and responding to a news report, Tewari said: on one hand, the disengagement process is yet to complete, and on the other, the BJP is already accepting Chinese money to build 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. 

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Centre starts clearing FDI from China

The Congress leader's allegations came after the Indian government started clearing FDI proposals from China on a “case-by-case” basis, ending the freeze that lasted nearly 9 months. The approvals began in the past few weeks, though so far it is restricted to “smaller cases”. 

In April, the Union government had changed the rules to permit FDI from neighbouring countries only with its prior approval. The move had hit Chinese investors that they emerged as a major supply of flows in recent times. 

While the rule was modified after the Covid-19 outbreak, no consent was given to Chinese investors as tension mounted on the Ladakh border, leading to a pile-up of investment proposals worth over Rs 12,000 crore. The goal was to keep a check on opportunistic takeovers by Chinese firms from across the border. 

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China-India Disengagement complete

Meanwhile, the disengagement of troops in the Pangong Lake area completed 'smoothly' after nearly 9 months of the stand-off over the Line of Actual Control (LAC), said the Ministry of Defense on Sunday after the 10th round of Corps Commander Level meeting. Hailing the disengagement as a 'significant step' forward, both sides said that they had a 'candid and in-depth' exchange of views on other issues along the LAC. 

India has insisted on increasing the pace of disengagement in areas like Hot Springs, Gogra, and Depsang to diffuse the tension in the region in the aftermath of a standoff between the two Armies. The disengagement of forces marks the ease in tensions between New Delhi and Beijing which have been soaring since the Galwan Valley clash in June last year where 20 Indian Army personnel were martyred. 

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