Manmohan remarks stir up row
NEWDELHI:A Prime Minister must be mindful of the implications of his words on a nation’s strategic interests, former PM Manmohan Singh said in his first public remarks on the Sino-indian border tensions on Monday, stressing that “disinformation” was no substitute for diplomacy or decisive leadership.
His statement was an apparent reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks at an allparty meeting on Friday that neither anyone is present in the Indian territory nor is any Indian post captured by the Chinese. The Congress party says the PM’S stand contradicts past remarks by the defence minister and the foreign minister on Chinese intrusion.
Singh said China should not be allowed to use the PM’S words as a “vindication” of its position that it did not enter the Indian side, and called upon the government to ensure justice for the 20 Indian Army soldiers killed in a deadly clash with China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh on June 15.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was quick to hit back. The party’s chief JP Nadda termed Singh’s statement “mere wordplay”, asked him not to “share his wisdom” on the Prime Minister’s responsibilities, and accused him of ceding ground to China when he was in power at the Centre.
“One only wishes that Dr
Singh was as worried about Chinese designs when, as PM, he abjectly surrendered hundreds of square kilometres of India’s land to China. He presided over 600 incursions made by China between 2010 to 2013!” Nadda tweeted, referring to Singh’s tenure as PM.
In his statement, Singh said the government’s decisions and actions will have “serious bearings on how the future generations perceive us”. He added that India was at a historic crossroads and those who lead us “bear the weight of solemn duty”. “And in our democracy that responsibility rests with the office of the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister must always be mindful of the implications of his words and declarations on our nation’s security as also strategic and territorial interests,” Singh said.
In the wake of a controversy over the PM’S remarks at the allparty meeting, the Prime Minister’s
Office (PMO) said on Saturday that there was a “mischievous interpretation” of Modi’s comments, and that the Prime Minister was clear that India will respond firmly to any attempts to transgress the LAC.
Singh said China was brazenly and illegally seeking to claim parts of Indian territory such as the Galwan Valley and the Pangong Tso Lake by committing multiple incursions since April.
In his reply, Nadda said the Congress and its leaders should stop insulting the armed forces and Singh should look at his own record. “Dr Manmohan Singh can certainly share his wisdom on many subjects but the responsibilities of the office of the Prime Minister aren’t one of them. UPA (Congress-led United Progressive Alliance) personified systematic institutional erosion of that office, combined with disrespect for our armed forces. NDA has reversed that!”