'Calibrated capitulation': Cong attacks Modi govt over China policy

The Congress on Thursday accused the Narendra Modi government of pursuing a policy of "calibrated capitulation" towards China, alleging that Parliament was not being allowed to debate Chinese incursions and evolve a unified strategy to address the challenge.

In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh cited statements by senior military officers and government officials on the situation along the India-China border in Arunachal Pradesh and eastern Ladakh. He said the country needed an information policy to keep the public informed about developments along the border.

Ramesh referred to remarks by retired Lt Gen Rakesh Sharma, former commander of the Army's Leh-based 14 Corps, who reportedly called for a public information policy on recurring incidents along the border.

Sharma had said people needed to be made aware that such incidents were taking place and that Indian forces were defending the country's interests. He also argued that developments could not be kept hidden for long in the age of social media.

Ramesh cited differences in official assessments of China's role during Operation Sindoor. He said Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen Rahul Singh had publicly described China's role in Pakistan on 4 July 2025.

However, retired Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan offered a "completely different assessment" on 25 August 2026, suggesting that China's involvement was not as deeply embedded as Lt Gen Singh had indicated, Ramesh said.

The Congress leader also referred to remarks made by Indo-Tibetan Border Police Director General Shatrujeet Singh on 22 October about the nature and extent of Chinese incursions into Arunachal Pradesh.

He said the remarks were contradicted by the Ministry of External Affairs and the Arunachal Pradesh chief minister a day later.

Referring to Sharma's latest remarks, Ramesh said recurring incidents along different sections of the India-China border required the government to adopt a policy of informing the public.

He alleged that the government had followed a policy of "calibrated capitulation" since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement on 19 June 2020, which the Congress has repeatedly criticised following the killing of 20 Indian soldiers in Ladakh during the border clashes.

Ramesh also pointed to India's trade deficit with China, which he said reached a record $112 billion in 2025-26, arguing that the imbalance had hurt micro, small and medium enterprises.

"Parliament is not even allowed to have an informed debate on China so that a cohesive, consistent and consensual strategy can be evolved to meet what is indeed a most formidable foreign and economic policy challenge," he said.