2008 Congress-CPC MoU emphasised strengthening party-to-party ties, Chinese reports show

Amid questions being raised over the Congress party's relationship with the Communist Party of China, which were brought to light after a photo of the two parties signing an MoU in 2008 surfaced, reports from the time reveal that this relationship could have been well beyond nation-to-nation lines focusing on the personal growth of the two parties. It is pertinent to note here that the Chinese Communist Party is enshrined in China's constitution and is permanently the party at the helm of affairs in the country. 

On the 90th anniversary celebrations of the communist party in 2011, Congress President Sonia Gandhi while giving an exclusive interview to China's news agency Xinhua during the UPA Government's second term shed some details on the 2008 MoU expanding on the need to strengthen the relationship between the two political parties. 

Sonia Gandhi in her interview revealed that the MoU would provide an opportunity for the two countries to consult each other on "important bilateral, regional and international developments". One of the key components in the MoU she said, was "a shared commitment to strengthen exchanges amongst the younger leadership in the two parties." 

While stressing greatly on the personal exchanges between the 'younger leadership' of the Congress and the CPC, Sonia Gandhi said, "That's to ensure that the generation of young leaders in China and India know and understand each other well, she said, thus deepening the relationship between the two parties, the two peoples and the two countries." 

Read: Rahul Gandhi Posts Photo ed By Rajiv Gandhi In Latest China Attack; Mum On 2008 Pact

Indian news agency IANS' sources in 2008 reported that the MoU signed between then Chinese vice-president and standing committee member of CPC Xi Jinping, and Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi in the presence of Sonia Gandhi was "strictly on a party-to-party basis." 

Their personal relationship was only highlighted by the fact that then Chinese President Hu Jintao met Sonia Gandhi to sign the MoU on a day that 70 heads of state from across the world were arriving in Beijing for the 2008 Olympics, showcasing the importance he gave to her as an individual.  

Such an MoU with the Communist Party of China highlights the trust that the CPC had when it comes to their relationship with the Congress, a level of trust that the CPC has not shown with international parties to date. Especially, since the 2008 MoU came in the backdrop of the rocky times being faced by the Congress-led UPA government in India, with its allies expressing mistrust in the leadership ahead of the 2009 elections, in which Manmohan Singh nevertheless emerged victorious.

CPC readily signing an MoU with the party amid these tensions where it was not certain that the UPA government would survive to see the end of their term further confirms that the pact was more to do with the Congress party than with India.

Meanwhile, on Wednesday, a PIL was filed in the Supreme Court seeking an NIA probe into the MoU signed between the Congress party and the CPC, maintaining that the "nation's security could not be compromised by anyone."

Read: BJP Mistrustful Of Manmohan Singh's China Remarks; Seeks Explanation For Rahul's 2008 Pact

Read: Senior Advocate Mahesh Jethmalani Calls For NIA Probe Into 2008 Congress-CPC Agreement