New Delhi:Congress' Pawan Khera hit back at External Affairs Minister Jaishankar's comment on the 1962 war with China saying that in 1962, India fought hard and lost territory to China but in 2020-23, we did not even put up a fight.
"There’s a fundamental difference between 1962 and 2020-23, Mr @DrSJaishankar. In 1962, we fought hard but lost our territory. In 2020-23, we not only lost our territory, but we also gave a clean chit to the one we lost our territory to," he tweeted.
While interacting with the audience in Pune in a question-answer session during the launch of 'Bharat Marg', the Marathi translation of his book 'The India Way', Jaishankar said that sometimes people spread wrong news or information about China on purpose.
Taking a jibe at the Congress he said, "Sometimes, they talk about some land, which was taken by China in 1962. But they will not tell you the truth. They will give you the impression that this thing happened yesterday," he said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had in September last year said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given "100 square kilometres of Indian territory" to China "without a fight," and asked the government how it will be retrieved.
Jaishankar also said sometimes some people say there is "soch me kami" (lack of understanding) in him but in that case, he will approach the military leadership, Army, or Intelligence. "I will not call the Chinese ambassador and seek information," he said. Notably, in 2017, when India and China were locked in a standoff on the border area abutting Bhutan, the Congress said Rahul Gandhi had met the ambassadors of the two neighbouring countries.
