'Indictment of PM's gullibility': Congress asks 6 questions on truce with China in Ladakh

Jairam Ramesh claimed PM Modi gave a clean chit to China just four days after 20 Indian soldiers died in the line of duty thwarting Chinese aggression

Days after the Ministry of External Affairs announced an agreement with China in eastern Ladakh, the Congress on Wednesday described the over four-year-long standoff between the two countries as “a complete indictment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's gullibility and naiveté”. The opposition party posted six direct questions to the BJP-led Centre on India's truce with China in eastern Ladakh, and said it hopes New Delhi's "worst foreign policy setback in decades is being honourably resolved".

Jairam Ramesh demanded that the Centre must take the people of the country into confidence regarding its latest agreement with China. (PTI file photo)

“Many questions remain about the Modi government's announcement that an agreement has been reached with China on patrolling arrangements along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The Foreign Secretary has said that this is 'leading to disengagement and eventually a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020,” said Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh in a written statement.

“We hope that India's worst foreign policy setback in decades is being honourably resolved. We expect that the disengagement will restore the status quo ante as it existed in March 2020,” he added.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday elaborated on India and China's disengagement process, saying the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) will return to what it was before May 2020.

Jairam Ramesh accused PM Modi of being gullible about China's designs.

“This sorry saga is a complete indictment of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's gullibility and naiveté regarding China. As CM of Gujarat, Modi was lavishly hosted by China three times. As PM, he made five official trips to China and held 18 meetings with Chinese Premier Xi Jinping, including a friendly jhoola session on the banks of the Sabarmati on his 64th birthday,” he wrote.

He claimed PM Modi gave a clean chit to China just four days after 20 Indian soldiers died in the line of duty thwarting Chinese aggression in eastern Ladakh's Galwan Valley.

"India's standing hit its lowest point on 19 June 2020 when the PM gave his infamous clean chit to China, saying "Na koi hamari seema mein ghus aaya hai, na hi koi ghusa hua hai”. This statement was made only four days after the clash in Galwan in which 20 of our brave soldiers made the supreme sacrifice. A profound insult to our fallen soldiers, it also legitimised China's aggression and thereby impeded the timely resolution of the standoff at the LAC. The Modi government's approach to the entire crisis could be described as DDLJ: Deny, Distract, Lie and Justify," he claimed.

Jairam Ramesh demanded that the Centre must take the people of the country into confidence regarding its latest agreement with China.

Jairam Ramesh's six questions to China

1. Will Indian troops be able to patrol up to our claim line in Depsang to five patrolling points past the Bottleneck junction as they were able to earlier?
2. Will our troops be able to reach the three patrolling points in Demchok that have remained out of bounds for more than four years?
3. Will our soldiers continue to be restricted to Finger 3 in Pangong Tso when earlier they could go as far as Finger 8?
4. Are our patrols permitted to access the three patrolling points in the Gogra-Hot Springs area that they could earlier go up to?
5. Will Indian graziers once again be given the right to access traditional grazing grounds in Helmet Top, Mukpa Re, Rezang La, Rinchen La, Table Top and Gurung Hill in Chushul?
6. Are the "buffer zones" that our government ceded to the Chinese, which included the site of a memorial in Rezang La to war hero and posthumous Param Vir Chakra awardee Major Shaitan Singh, now a thing of the past?

China confirms agreement with India in Ladakh

New Delhi said on Monday that India and China have reached an agreement on patrolling arrangements along the Line of Actual Control.

"Now as a result of the discussions that have taken place over the last several weeks, an agreement has been arrived at on patrolling arrangements along the line of actual control in the India-China border areas and this is leading to dis-engagement and eventually a resolution of the issues that had arisen in these areas in 2020," said foreign secretary Vikram Misri.

China's foreign ministry on Tuesday confirmed that it had reached an agreement with India to end the standoff in eastern Ladakh.

"In recent times, China and India have maintained close communication on relevant issues on the China-India border through diplomatic and military channels. At present, the two sides have reached a solution to the relevant issues, which China has positively evaluated. In the next step, China will work with India to implement the above solution,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said.