Launching a scathing attack amid the ongoing border dispute between India and China, Congress on Monday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s strategy to tackle the border crisis in the eastern Ladakh after more than two years can be summed up with DDLJ – Deny, Distract, Lie and Justify.
The language of the Indian government seems to have weakened over the time, Congress spokesperson Gaurav Gogoi said during a press conference at AICC headquarters.
“There seems to be no concrete solution to the disputes surrounding the security of the Indian borders in the northern Ladakh area after the recent meeting between Union external affairs minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on May 7,” Gogoi said.
Over the last two years, India and China have hardened their stance on LAC with increased military activities on both sides of the boundary, deployment of modern weapons, infrastructure development, and a series of combat manoeuvres by their armies. The standoff between the militaries of both countries, that has cast a shadow over the Sino-India bilateral relationship, entered its third year in May 2022.
A full resolution is still not in sight, even though the two sides have had partial success in disengaging rival soldiers from some friction areas.
The Congress spokesperson said the person who once promised to show “lal aankh” to China is today afraid to even take China’s name. “No surprise then that the latest round of talks on July 7 between EAM Jaishankar and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi failed to show any results,” Gogoi said.
The spokesperson said India’s stance towards China has become reactive rather than proactive. The statements from the Centre have stopped referring to the status quo as an objective.
“It is clear that the Chinese are being hyper-aggressive, while our leadership prefers to deceive the Indian people under its DDLJ strategy,” Gogoi said.
Gogoi further said India has reached such a sorry situation that China doesn’t even bother to acknowledge India’s demands. “While the Ministry of External Affairs’ statement following the meeting called on China ‘to complete the disengagement from all remaining areas’, the Chinese statement made no reference to Ladakh whatsoever,” Congress said in a statement.
The grand old party said the BJP government uses the euphemism “friction points” to describe the border situation. “If our Prime Minister cannot summon the courage to tell the people of India the truth about Ladakh, why would our adversary acknowledge it?” Congress asked in the statement.
Congress further pointed out the Union ministry of defence’s stance to take down a document from its website that contradicted PM Modi. The document reportedly admitted that “the Chinese side transgressed in the areas of Kugrang Nala, Gogra and the north bank of Pangong Tso lake”.
Addressing the Centre’s efforts to authorise the Indian Army and occupy Kailash Range in the south of Pangong Tso lake, Congress said PM Modi then “lost his nerve” and gave up the advantageous position.