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Rediff.com  » News » Din in Rajya Sabha over Chinese envoy's remarks

Din in Rajya Sabha over Chinese envoy's remarks

Source: PTI
Last updated on: November 24, 2006 14:24 IST
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Acrimonious scenes were witnessed in the Rajya Sabha on Friday on the Chinese envoy's remarks on Arunachal Pradesh. 

The Bharatiya Janata Party charged the government with 'mortgaging' its foreign policy to Communist Party of India (Marxist) and demanded a Parliamentary resolution stating 'unambiguously' that the border state is an integral part of India.

As slogan-shouting BJP members trooped into the well to press their demand, noisy scenes continued for 30 minutes in the Zero Hour, leading to adjournment of the House till 1400 hours.

The issue was raised by Leader of the Opposition Jaswant Singh who blamed the CPI(M) for having 'difficulty in accepting that China has committed an aggression'.

"I appeal to the government not to mortage its foreign policy to CPI(M) which has not uttered a single word that China was an aggressor," he said triggering protests from Left benches.

Maintaining the CPI(M) was yet to declare unequivocally that China had indulged in aggression, Singh said the Manmohan Singh-led government had been 'held to ransom' by the Left even on important foreign policy issues.

"Policies are determined not by the government but by the CPI(M). I appeal to the government that important foreign policy issues that are vital for the territorial integrity of the country should not be decided by proxy," he said.

Singh said 'timidity' on part of the government in expressing total robust commitment to country's territorial integrity was not a good foreign policy.

He said CPI(M) did not consider India as its motherland and the party's eyes always remained on Moscow and Beijing.

Congress members V Narayanaswamy and Rajeev Shukla protested against Singh's remarks leading to further commotion in the House.

Refuting the charges, CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury asserted that Arunachal Pradesh is an integral part of India and shall remain so.

He asked Singh not to spread 'canards' as the fact remained that the aggression took place in 1962 while CPI(M) was formed in 1964.

"We are not going to be bulldozed by fascistic intolerance," he said.

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