India-China Galwan standoff book: Mumbai Congress protests against Centre

Mumbai Youth Congress on Wednesday staged a protest, urging the Centre to clarify its stand on the 2020 India-China Galwan Valley standoff and to allow the immediate publication of a book - Four Stars of Destiny book - by former Army chief General Manoj Naravane.

The demonstration, led by Mumbai Youth Congress president Zeenat Shabreen, was held outside the Congress office at Rajiv Gandhi Bhavan in South Mumbai, reported news agency PTI. 

Slogans critical of the Modi government were raised during the agitation, with Youth Congress workers expressing anger over what they described as the Centre’s “failure” to address national security concerns.

Modi govt silent on security issues: Youth Congress

According to PTI, the Youth Congress alleged that the Modi government has remained silent on key security issues and has “concealed” facts related to the June 2020 Galwan Valley clash in eastern Ladakh.

A violent face-off between Indian and Chinese border troops in the Galwan Valley had resulted in the death of 20 Indian soldiers.

Shabreen questioned what Prime Minister Narendra Modi was “hiding” about the incident and demanded that the government provide clear answers to the nation on the China issue.

Galwan clash: Govt delay led to soldiers’ sacrifice, claims Congress leader

She also slammed the government for not allowing the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, to speak in Parliament on the sensitive matter and for preventing him from quoting from Naravane’s unpublished memoir on the India-China standoff, reported PTI. 

Claiming that the government failed to take timely decisions despite inputs from the armed forces, Shabreen said this lapse led to the sacrifice of Indian soldiers during the Galwan clash.

The Mumbai Youth Congress president demanded that responsibility be fixed and action taken against those responsible for the soldiers’ deaths.

Stating that the sacrifice of the soldiers would not be allowed to go in vain, Shabreen said the Youth Congress would continue its agitation until the government responds to its demands, reported PTI. 

Claims of restricted quotation in Parliament

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said that he had been informed that he was not permitted to quote from the memoir in the Lok Sabha, despite its relevance to national security and parliamentary debate.

Citing the contents of the memoir, Rahul Gandhi alleged that when Chinese tanks reached the Kailash Range, then Army Chief Gen Naravane sought urgent instructions from the political leadership.

According to Gandhi, Naravane first contacted Defence Minister Rajnath Singh but received no immediate response. He then reached out to External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, but again did not receive clear instructions.

“When he called again, the Defence Minister said he would ‘ask from the top’,” Gandhi claimed, the news agency reported.

Gandhi further alleged that there was a standing order from the highest level that Indian forces should not open fire on Chinese troops without prior political clearance, even if they had entered Indian territory.

He said the Army leadership wanted to respond militarily but was constrained by the lack of clear approval.

PM passed responsibility to Army Chief: Rahul Gandhi

Quoting what he described as the key line from the memoir, Gandhi claimed Prime Minister Modi ultimately conveyed the message: “Jo uchit samjho woh karo” (Do what you think is appropriate), as per the PTI.

Gandhi interpreted this as the Prime Minister passing responsibility to the Army Chief rather than taking a firm decision himself.

“He told the Army Chief, ‘You do whatever you want; this is beyond me,’” Gandhi alleged, citing the memoir, according to the PTI.

(With PTI inputs)