Books by veteran politicians and retired bureaucrats often create controversies.
And this applies to The Long Game: How the Chinese Negotiate with India, a book by retired foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale.
The book, which was published in mid-July, delves into the nature of ties and engagements between India and China. Gokhale had been a veteran in India's engagements with China, including serving as the ambassador to Beijing. On Tuesday, The Indian Express reported that Gokhale's book claimed that China "perhaps played" on the fears of the Left parties about the US in an attempt to scuttle the civilian nuclear deal in 2008. The Left parties had withdrawn support for the Manmohan Singh government over the nuclear deal in 2008, which the BJP also had opposed.
The book claimed China used its ties with the Left parties to "build domestic opposition" to the nuclear deal. Gokhale added this may have been the "first instance for China to operate politically in Indian domestic politics", The Indian Express reported.
Not surprisingly, the book has triggered political sparring. BJP IT department head Amit Malviya tweeted The Indian Express article on Tuesday and also targeted the Congress over it. It was the Congress-led government under then prime minister Manmohan Singh that negotiated the nuclear deal. Malviya alleged Sonia Gandhi had abandoned Manmohan over the issue.
Malviya tweeted, "It is not just the treacherous Left that played ball with China to impede the Indo-US deal. It was also the time (2007) when Sonia Gandhi seemed to have withdrawn her support to Dr MMS on the crucial deal. Could it be a coincidence that CCP was funding the RGF at the same time?" Malviya brought up the ties of the Communist Party of China with the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, a bogey the BJP has used previously.
also read
- Why Russia’s revocation of global nuclear test ban treaty raises concerns
- Iran calls 84 per cent uranium enrichment allegation a 'conspiracy'
- Iran enriches more uranium in response to UN watchdog order
- EU submits 'final' text' to revive Iran nuclear deal
- Iran turns off 2 of UN nuclear watchdog's cameras
However, Left leaders hit back at the criticism. CPI(M) member Hannan Molah was quoted by ANI as saying, "In India, bourgeois ruling parties work as agents of US & Israel. Left never had foreign influence. They have independent understanding. Left didn't do anti-national work."
CPI MP Binoy Viswam described the allegations made in the book about Left parties as "irresponsible and nonsensical comments". Viswam was quoted by ANI as saying, "Such irresponsible and nonsensical comments need no reply. The Left... political contingent of Indian reality is more patriotic than any bureaucrats or rightwing politicians."
