Congress holds line-of-attack over China; glosses over LAC 'disengagement & de-escalation'

A day after senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi must call a special session of the Parliament to discuss the 'infiltration of Chinese troops', he has claimed that China has taken a 'hard line.' Claiming the issue to be 'sensitive' and 'very serious', he said that PM should either call a session of Parliament or call an all-party meeting to clarify the actual position with India. This comes despite reports of de-escalation and disengagement from eastern Ladakh on Tuesday evening. 

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On Monday, Rahul Gandhi mocked Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the border tensions between India and China. He was commenting on Shah's statement in the virtual rally wherein the Home Minister said that India's defence policy is strong and that the country knows how to protect its borders. Thereafter, Rahul Gandhi also slammed the Indian Army, media and Raksha Mantri Rajnath Singh. Hitting out at Wayanad MP, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that Congress has been fearmongering over this issue he will respond on only in the Parliament. Opposition parties, led by the Congress, have repeatedly stated that the Chinese army has taken possession of Indian territory, disregarding contrary official statements, and politicising the armed forces' engagement with the Chinese side to defuse tensions. 

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Indo-China Border tensions

The ongoing border dispute between India and China first came into the forefront on May 9 when clash was reported between military of the two nations at Naku La in Sikkim. Furthermore, on May 10, army official informed that there were other clashes that took place on May 6 near Pangong Tso Lake area in eastern Ladakh. Moreover, days after this, Chinese military helicopters were spotted close to the LAC in eastern Ladakh. A fleet of Su-30 fighters of the Indian Air Force then carried out sorties in the area.

Army Chief General M M Naravane then issued a statement saying that clashes are nothing new and the army is following the established treaty between the two nations. Speaking to Republic TV, Rajnath Singh said that diplomatic channels are in talks but India will not compromise with its self-respect. 

With an aim to find a solution to the tensions, India and China held Corps Commander level talks on June 6 at Moldo. Issuing a statement after 5-long hours of talks, New Delhi that both sides agreed to peacefully resolve the situation and described the meeting as 'cordial and positive atmosphere'. Beijing also affirmed that the overall situation at the border areas is now 'generally stable' and 'under control' and both sides will resolve the issue through diplomatic and military channels, and consequently, that there had been de-escalation and disengagement.

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