The Congress party in India has accused the Narendra Modi government of taking a “callous attitude” towards the issue, citing Army Chief General Manoj Pande’s recent remarks as evidence of the “serious deterioration” of India’s national security, and has accused the Modi administration of viewing the matter through the lens of electoral gain.
“General Pande’s remark that our attempt is to continue talks (with China) to go back to the status quo ante which existed in the middle of 2020 is a reminder that the Chinese continue to deny Indian troops access to 2,000 square kilometres of territory in Ladakh almost four years after their intrusion,” Jairam Ramesh, the leader of the Congress, said the weekend.
Despite “repeated false claims” that cross-border terrorism will end due to demonetisation or the elimination of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood, he went on to say that the Army chief’s assessment of “increased terrorist activities” in Rajouri and Poonch is a clear indicator of the problem.
Army Chief General Manoj Pande’s recent remarks at his annual press conference in 2024 are a timely reminder of the serious deterioration of India’s national security environment under the Modi government.
On one hand, despite all the claims of Modi government, troops are being… pic.twitter.com/0lWRlvk5xX
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) January 13, 2024
According to Jairam Ramesh, terrorist strikes in Jammu & Kashmir have resulted in the deaths of up to 160 soldiers since August 5, 2019. On Friday, a group of people in Poonch opened fire on an army cavalcade, allegedly targeting terrorists. Fortunately, nobody was hurt this time.
The senior Congress leader further indicated that the book written by former Army Chief MM Naravane, which states that the Army was “taken by surprise by the Agnipath scheme and that for the Navy and Air Force, it came like a bolt from the blue,” demonstrated the “callous attitude” of the Centre towards national security, according to the senior party.
The matter of national security has been diminished to a “instrument of his personality cult and self-aggrandisement,” according to Jairam Ramesh, who argued that these examples prove it.
In addition, he claimed that Prime Minister Modi’s claim from June 19, 2020, that no Chinese incursion had taken place was “an insult” to the brave warriors who had died defending the borders.
“The prime minister seems to think that going on vacation and promoting himself on social media can stand in for actually doing something to safeguard India’s national interests,” Jairam Ramesh added, subtly criticizing PM Modi’s recent trip to Lakshadweep.
