After Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar sparked controversy with his “alleged invasion” remark regarding the 1962 India-China war, Jairam Ramesh announced on Wednesday that Aiyar has apologized and the party distances itself from his original terminology.
Ramesh also criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his statement on the 2020 India-China clash in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley, accusing the PM of weakening India’s negotiating position by seemingly giving a clean chit to China.
In a post on X, Ramesh stated, “Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar has subsequently apologized unreservedly for mistakenly using the term ‘alleged invasion.’ Allowances must be made for his age. The INC distances itself from his original phraseology. The Chinese invasion of India that began on October 20, 1962, was real. So too were the Chinese incursions in Ladakh in early May 2020, in which 20 of our soldiers were martyred, disturbing the status quo.”
Ramesh added, “The outgoing PM, however, gave a clean chit publicly to the Chinese on June 19, 2020, seriously weakening our negotiating position. 2000 sq km of territory, including Depsang and Demchok, remain out of bounds for Indian troops.”
The 1962 Indo-China War, which took place between October and November 1962, saw Chinese troops attack across the ‘MacMahon Line’ and capture the Aksai Chin region, which belongs to India.
Addressing a press conference on Tuesday, Mani Shankar Aiyar had said, “In October 1962, the Chinese allegedly invaded India.” Earlier this month, Aiyar courted controversy after an interview clip went viral, in which he described Pakistan as a “respected nation” with an atom bomb, suggesting that India must engage in dialogue with them. He further claimed that there had been “no efforts” from India to “reach out” to Pakistan in the last ten years.
