New Delhi: The Congress on Sunday accused the Narendra Modi government of making repeated concessions to China, describing its approach towards Beijing as “calibrated capitulation”.
The opposition party’s attack followed Modi’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS summit. Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh questioned the prime minister’s handling of the border dispute, China’s alleged activities in Arunachal Pradesh and the widening trade imbalance between the two countries.
The government and the BJP had not immediately responded to the allegations.
During his meeting with Xi, Modi said peace and tranquillity along the India-China border remained an “essential” condition for further progress in bilateral relations. The two leaders welcomed “steady progress” in ties and agreed that their relationship should be viewed from a strategic and long-term perspective.
They also maintained that differences between the two countries should not escalate into disputes, the Ministry of External Affairs said.
Ramesh Raises Galwan Issue
In a statement on X, Ramesh said Modi needed to answer four questions that, according to him, remained unresolved.
“Now that his bilateral summit with President Xi Jinping is over, here are four questions for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to which the nation continues to seek answers. Did not your infamous clean chit to China on June 19, 2020 weaken India?”
Ramesh’s remarks referred to the Galwan Valley clash of June 15-16, 2020, in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed during a confrontation with Chinese troops. The incident marked the first fatalities on the border in 45 years.
“Just four days later, on June 19, 2020, you inexplicably told an all-party meeting ‘Na koi humari seema mein ghus aaya hai, na hi koi ghusa hua hai.’ That statement has never been retracted. Has this not greatly weakened our subsequent negotiating position?” he asked.
The Congress leader alleged that the government’s position after the clash had damaged India’s bargaining power. He also questioned why China had been allowed to make what he called territorial gains in both Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh, as reported by The New Indian Express.
“Our traditional patrolling and grazing rights across large stretches of Eastern Ladakh have been quietly but definitely ‘surrendered’,” Ramesh alleged.
He further claimed that Chinese activity in Arunachal Pradesh had led to the loss of access to some Indian patrolling points and triggered fresh confrontations.
Congress Attacks China’s Arunachal Stance
Ramesh said China’s conduct in Arunachal Pradesh had become increasingly assertive. He cited Beijing’s renaming of places, its renewed claim over areas it refers to as “South Tibet” and its plans for a massive hydropower project near Medog.
“China’s posture on Arunachal Pradesh has only hardened: renaming towns, reasserting claims to what it calls ‘South Tibet’, and pushing ahead with its 60,000-MW Medog mega-dam on the Brahmaputra’s Great Bend, a project that gives it a stranglehold over the water security of our entire northeast,” he said.
The Congress leader also accused the government of weakening its public position on China’s alleged assistance to Pakistan during Operation Sindoor.
He referred to a July 4, 2025, statement by Lieutenant General Rahul Singh, the deputy chief of Army staff, who had spoken about the military establishment’s assessment of China’s “deep and pivotal role” in supporting Pakistan.
“But all of a sudden, on August 25, 2026, the former Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Anil Chauhan took a completely different position in a lecture at the VIF with which the National Security Adviser has himself been closely associated. Was this part of a strategy to change the atmospherics leading up to yesterday’s meeting?” Ramesh said.
Trade Imbalance Under Scrutiny
Ramesh suggested that the shift in official messaging could have been aimed at improving the atmosphere ahead of the Modi-Xi engagement.
He also questioned the government’s handling of bilateral trade, asking why the deficit with China had been permitted to reach unprecedented levels.