Congress questions PM Modi on top US commander’s remarks on China

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala had questions for Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Admiral Philip S. Davidson told US lawmakers that China still hasn’t withdrawn from ‘several positions seized’ after clashes with India in eastern Ladakh.

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala on Wednesday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the alleged land grab of Indian territory by the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA), a day after a top US military commander said that China still hasn’t withdrawn from ‘several forward positions’ seized in clashes with the Indian forces along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala (HT File Photo)

“Modi Ji told the Nation-‘No one has intruded into our territory,” Surjewala tweeted, referring to comments made by PM Modi at an all-party meeting on June 19 last year, four days after 20 Indian soldiers were killed in action in clashes with the Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan Valley.

A day after the all-party meeting, the Union government had responded to the controversy over PM Modi’s remarks, with the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) terming it as ‘mischievous.’

“Now our ally, US has also exposed the lies told by Modi Ji. Questions: 1. Will PM now tell the truth? 2. When will we push China back from our territory?” the Congress chief spokesperson added.

Surjewala was referring to remarks made by Admiral Philip S. Davidson, who commands the US military’s Indo-Pacific Command, at a congressional hearing on Tuesday. “The PLA has not yet withdrawn from several forwards positions it seized following the initial clash, and the consequent escalation of tensions between the PRC (People’s Republic of China) and India has resulted in casualties on both sides,” Admiral Davidson told lawmakers at a Senate hearing on the Indo-US Pacific Command.

Skirmishes between India and China began in the first week of May 2020, resulting in a prolonged military standoff between the armies of both countries. Last month, defence minister Rajnath Singh announced in Parliament that the two sides had reached an agreement to disengage from the northern and southern banks of the Pangong Tso lake, one of several friction sites in the region. Singh proclaimed that ‘India has not lost anything,’ a stand that the central government has taken since the beginning of the crisis.

Watch: 'Nobody wants unsettled border': Army chief Naravane on India-China LAC row

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been repeatedly criticising the government for its inaction over the alleged land grab by China in Indian territory.