RaGa claims China encroachment in Ladakh, receives flak

Gandhi answering reporters at Pangong Lake, Ladakh(Image Source: ANI)

Ladakh, India: In a fresh row over the India-China border disputes, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi highlighted that grazing land has been occupied by the neighbouring country on Sunday. Gandhi alleged falsity at the claims of PM Modi that “not an inch was taken”, and prompted doubters to ask “anyone here”. While some political figures voiced their support, Gandhi has also attracted detractors.

During a bike trip to Ladakh, his first since the region acquired the status of a Union Territory in 2019, Gandhi was interviewed near Pangong Lake, who reflected on the plight of the locals, perturbed with China allegedly encroaching on land used for grazing, thus deeply affecting the livelihoods of many who call the remote hills of Ladakh home. Gandhi compared the situation on ground with the PM’s remark, suggesting that more land has been lost than the Government has reported.

Tributes, advocacy and engine oil–Gandhi’s schedule(Image Source: News18)

His comments, made after a tribute to his father, ex-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, on his birth anniversary, offer an insight on a contentious issue spanning decades. The periphery between India and China has been a theatre for tensions, flaring up considerably during the war of 1962, and haven’t died down since. The Modi administration has seen its fair share of sporadic clashes in the past 2 years, with reports that both the nations’ troops have pulled back in September 2022. Locals, however, claim that these ‘buffer zones’–no man’s lands created as a result of the non-demarcated nature of the Line of Control– include patches earlier used for grazing. Konchok Stanzin, a local politician from eastern Ladakh Chusul region, in an Outlook article in December 2022, pointed at the Indian disadvantage increasing since 1962, and asked for proper demarcation of the LOC.

Politicians have also added their voices to this chorus of frustration. “China has captured India's land and there is evidence of it as well,” said Shiv Sena politician Sanjay Raut to news agency ANI. “If the defence minister and the prime minister does not accept this, I think it is an injustice to Mother India (sic).” Congress leader Pawan Khera showed his gratitude by thanking Gandhi on X (formerly Twitter), while taking a jab at Modi, saying how “our PM whimpered a clean chit.”

Given the sensitivity of the subject at hand, Gandhi’s claims were quick to receive flak. Security expert Lt General (Retd) Sanjay Kulkarni found the Congress leader’s comments out of place. According to the army veteran, the ongoing military talks are concerning the regions Demchok and Depsang, where patrolling is restricted. Thus, according to the army veteran, Gandhi’s remarks would be “incorrect”, advising that such statements are uninvited when military talks are going on.

Former J&K Deputy CM Kavinder Gupta was dismissive of Gandhi's remarks, and lambasted the Congress' mindset "to speak against the country and not to support the soldiers." Gupta then questioned Gandhi's knowledge on Ladakh, commenting that the Congress leader was simply "on a tour", and thus, "knew nothing".

Kulkarni dissected Gandhi’s remarks in an ANI interview (Image Source: Rising Kashmir)

Border issues, however, were not the only thing on Gandhi's agenda on Sunday. “They are not happy with the status that has been given to them," said Gandhi, touching upon the supposed dissatisfaction of the locals on Ladakh's changed status as a Union Territory. According to him, the locals demanded less of a bureaucratic presence in the running of the state, with power vested more in representatives of the people. Gandhi expressed his disappointment in Ladakh getting left out from his 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', thus deciding to do a "detailed tour" of the region, while lending an ear to the local qualms and pleas in the process.