The issue of a statement on China was raised at the meeting of the Parliament’s Business Advisory Committee.
New Delhi:
Defense Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to address parliament tomorrow in the India-China border row, sources told NDTV. The government has been under constant attack from Congress, led by Rahul Gandhi, for clashing with China on the Royal Line of Control, the de facto border between the two countries.
The matter was raised yesterday at the meeting of the Parliament’s Business Advisory Committee, aimed at discussing and scheduling the business agenda for the next session.
When asked if a statement will be made on the India-China standoff, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said that taking into account the “sensitivities of the situation and strategic points”, the government will make a decision. The leaders, he had said, would be briefed at a meeting on Tuesday.
The government was pressured to issue a statement following repeated transgressions by People’s Liberation Army soldiers in Lake Pangong and several other areas in Ladakh since April.
The affair escalated dramatically in June, when 20 Indian soldiers died in the line of duty on June 15, the first time in more than four decades.
On two occasions in the past three weeks, Chinese troops had carried out provocative actions on the southern shore of Pangong Tso, a glacial lake.
But India was “able to prevent these attempts to unilaterally alter the status quo” in LAC, the Foreign Ministry said.
The last action on August 31 was a daytime operation during which the Indian soldiers were surrounded by Chinese soldiers, who were trying to regain the heights that are being dominated by the Indian army.
Every time after the Chinese action, Rahul Gandhi has demanded that the government reveal the real situation on the Royal Line of Control and how it intended to resolve it.
Days after the June 15 “violent clash” in the Galwan Valley, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Ladakh to boost soldiers’ morale, prompting a congressional attack.
At a meeting of all parties, the head of Congress, Sonia Gandhi, delivered a harsh criticism about being kept “in the dark even at this last stage.”
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