Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Tuesday said that he offered a suggestion to Defence minister Rajnath Singh after his statement to Parliament on the recent face-off between Indian and Chinese soldiers along the Line of Actual Control in the Tawang Sector of Arunachal Pradesh. In his address to both houses of Parliament, the Defence Minister said that Indian soldiers successfully drove away Chinese troops and that no Indian soldier sustained any serious injury in the incident.
“The Indian Army bravely prevented the PLA from encroaching on our territory, and forced them to withdraw to their posts. Some soldiers from both sides were injured in the skirmish,” the Defence minister said. “I would like to assure this House that our forces are fully committed to safeguard our territorial integrity, and are always ready to prevent any attempt against it,” he added.
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Speaking to the media later, Tharoor said that while India needs to be alert about the Chinese aggression, he advised the Defence minister to ensure that the world knows that India is united on the issue and that every member of every political party stands with the Indian Army on this.
“No doubt that China has its eyes on Tawang. We’ve to be very alert there. I think what our Army did yesterday had the support of the entire country. I told Defence Min that they should show the world that India is one and every member of every party is with Army on this,” Tharoor said.
Earlier in the day, the Opposition created a huge uproar in both Houses of Parliament and disrupted the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha demanding a statement on the matter by the Prime Minister. Despite a statement by the Defence minister, Opposition leaders staged a walkout from the Lower House demanding an explanation on the Defence minister’s statement.
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Home minister Amit Shah hit out at the Opposition over the disruptions and said Congress was flustered as a question on the cancellation of the FCRA license to the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation was among those listed during the Question Hour. He also raised the issue of funding by the Chinese embassy to the foundation and asked the Congress to respond on why it had procured funding from the neighbouring nation.
The Indian Army on Monday said in a statement that troops on both sides clashed on December 9 resulting in minor injuries to both sides.
“On December 9, PLA troops contacted the LAC in Tawang Sector which was contested by own (Indian) troops in a firm and resolute manner. This face-off led to minor injuries to a few personnel from both sides.” “Both sides immediately disengaged from the area. As a follow up of the incident, own (Indian) commander in the area held a flag meeting with his counterpart to discuss the issue in accordance with structured mechanisms to restore peace and tranquillity,” the statement added.