New Delhi Bureau
New Delhi. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over reports of continuing face-offs between Indian and Chinese troops in Arunachal Pradesh, demanding that the Prime Minister “come clean before India” and stop giving “clean chits” to Beijing. In a post on X, Kharge posed three pointed questions to the Prime Minister — on national security, economic security and diplomatic accountability.
The attack follows remarks by Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) Director General Shatrujeet Singh Kapoor, who reportedly said at the force’s annual felicitation ceremony in Alwar, Rajasthan, that “in the past few days, a situation arose where face-offs happened at several locations in Arunachal, and it still continues.”
What the ITBP chief said
According to media reports, Kapoor said at the Alwar event that the force’s newly raised Shaurya commando teams had done exemplary work during the recent face-offs. He recalled that the ITBP was raised as a mountain guerrilla force and given the mandate of guarding the border with China in 2004, adding: “We should not abandon our exact mandate.” His remarks are being seen as significant for the role and alertness of the force deployed on the frontier.
In the Arunachal Pradesh sector of the Line of Actual Control (LAC), the ITBP and the Army remain deployed on the Indian side. Face-offs between soldiers of the two countries have been reported from this sector from time to time in the past as well.
Question 1: Come clean on national security
In his post, Kharge wrote: “Enough CLEAN CHITS to China. PM Modi must COME CLEAN before India!” He said the ITBP Director General’s confirmation of continuing face-offs with the Chinese PLA in Arunachal Pradesh was “deeply alarming”.
“After Doklam and Galwan, is another serious confrontation unfolding?” Kharge asked, citing reports of Chinese incursions near Taksing that emerged in August. He noted that confrontations continue even 47 days after Corps Commander-level talks at Wacha–Damai, reportedly just 180 km away.
“Has India’s patrolling access been compromised? Arunachal Pradesh is an inseparable part of India. Why is the nation being kept in the dark?” the Congress president asked, demanding that the Prime Minister take Parliament and the nation into confidence.
Earlier, the Congress had demanded that Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah clarify reports that China had prevented Indian troops from patrolling certain areas of Arunachal Pradesh. “After Galwan, now Arunachal Pradesh? Disturbing reports suggest that China is attempting to push further into areas in Arunachal Pradesh, an inalienable part of our nation. This demands immediate answers from the Modi Government,” the party had said.
Question 2: What about economic security
Kharge’s second question concerned economic security. He said that since the sacrifice of 20 Indian bravehearts at Galwan (FY2020–21), imports from China have surged 102%, while India’s trade deficit with China has ballooned 155% to $112.16 billion.
The Congress president said that even Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman admits China obstructs Indian exports. Yet, he said, the government is easing restrictions on Chinese investment and considering production-linked incentive (PLI) benefits for eligible China-linked ventures. “Has Make in India become Import from China?” Kharge asked.
Question 3: Where is diplomatic accountability
In his third question, Kharge demanded diplomatic accountability. He pointed to “at least 23 reported Modi–Xi meetings and interactions, 25 Special Representatives’ rounds involving NSA Ajit Doval, 36 WMCC meetings, and successive SCO and BRICS Summits”.
“What tangible results have these engagements delivered? Have India’s pre-May 2020 patrolling rights been fully restored?” he asked. “Our Armed Forces have our complete confidence. But national security demands accountability, not diplomatic photo opportunities! Instead of attacking the Opposition, PM Modi must take Parliament and the Nation into confidence,” Kharge said.
BJP hits back: “The border is dynamic — that doesn’t mean war”
The Bharatiya Janata Party rejected the Congress’s charges outright. BJP national spokesperson Nalin Kohli said the Opposition was reading too much into the ITBP chief’s remarks.
“The border is a dynamic place, and there are units and units that work there. These units are engaged with local units. That does not mean a war is on or that a conflict like last year’s is underway,” Kohli said.
He added: “During Manmohan Singh ji’s tenure, there was regular firing along the border, and mortar shells were also fired along the Bangladesh border on a regular basis. That did not mean war. These were things happening in a localised manner.” The BJP’s position is that presenting localised activity on the border as a wider conflict is wrong.
At the time of writing, there was no official reaction from the Prime Minister’s Office or the Ministry of External Affairs to Kharge’s questions.
Background: From Doklam to Galwan
The India-China border dispute is decades old, but the past decade has seen several turning points. In 2017, the two armies stood face to face at Doklam for 73 days. In June 2020, a violent clash in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley killed 20 Indian soldiers, plunging bilateral ties into serious tension.
Since then, multiple rounds of Corps Commander-level talks, Special Representative-level dialogue and meetings of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination (WMCC) have sought to reduce tensions on the border. Face-offs have been reported from the Arunachal Pradesh sector from time to time, though the government has generally described them as localised incidents.
The political battle over foreign policy is set to intensify
Political sparring over foreign policy was already heated — External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s recent remarks at a summit had also triggered a political row. With the ITBP chief’s remarks and Kharge’s three questions, the debate is set to intensify further.
The Congress president has demanded that the Prime Minister take Parliament and the nation into confidence. All eyes are now on whether the government officially answers these questions. The ITBP and the Army remain vigilant on the border, and the deployment of specialised units like the Shaurya commandos shows border management is being taken seriously. But without answers to the Opposition’s questions, this debate shows no sign of dying down.
डिस्क्लेमर: यह खबर उपलब्ध स्रोतों और सत्यापन के आधार पर तैयार की गई है। किसी तथ्य में त्रुटि होने पर सुधार प्रकाशित किया जाएगा।
