Taking a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Saturday said that some people deliberately spread wrong news about the China issue knowingly its not true for politics. The land, which was taken by China in 1962 is referred to as if it happened recently, said Jaishankar.
EAM was interacting with the audience during the launch of 'Bharat Marg', the Marathi translation of his book 'The India Way', in Pune.
While speaking at the session, he also said the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) is a technical matter and Indus commissioners of both countries will talk to each other on this issue.
Replying to the queries on some leaders from political parties lacking confidence in India while speaking about China military stand-off, Jaishankar said that there are some people in the Opposition who have such thinking and such people spread wrong news or information about China on purpose.
"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.
In September last year Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had 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 added that in case of any lack of understanding, he would approach the military leadership, Army or Intelligence. "I will not call the Chinese ambassador and seek information," he said.
Back in 2017, Rahul Gandhi had met with the ambassadors of the two neighbouring countries when India and China was locked in a standoff on border area near Bhutan.
Jaishankar said that China will become a superpower in the coming years.
The EAM also said that his book aimed to get people to associate with the nation's foreign policy and not just listen to the "mandarins" (a term generally used for powerful bureaucrats).
He also spoke on China and the challenges the country faces with the ambitious northern neighbour as well as India's ties with Japan and its role in the Indo-Pacific.
"There are eight chapters (in the book). I wanted people to be associated with (the country's) foreign policy. I want to involve people from other states as well, not just Delhi," he said.
Jaishankar also spoke about terrorism. He said that no nation has suffered from the menace as much as India due to the "neighbour we have", with an apparent reference to Pakistan.
(With PTI inputs)
