Chinese whispers

China8217;s diplomatic protest against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh8217;s visit to Arunachal Pradesh is not surprising in itself. India is fully aware of China8217;s claims to the entire territory of the state and is actively involved in high level negotiations to resolve the boundary dispute with Beijing. What is surprising, however, is Beijing8217;s relentless contestation of every single recent Indian administrative and political action in the state and its provocative actions such as the denial of visas to Indian citizens from Arunachal.

That the boundary negotiations, which began with positive expectations in 2003, have entered a delicate phase is well known. Since 2005, when India and China announced an agreed set of political parameters for the resolution of the dispute, the talks on finding a mutually satisfactory territorial compromise appear to have regressed. India and China now seem to be quarreling about the interpretation of the 2005 statement on the guiding principles for the final settlement. The perception that China is walking away from the earlier political understandings on how to address the boundary dispute has begun to gain some weight in New Delhi. If the results from the negotiations between India8217;s National Security Adviser M.K. Narayanan and the Chinese Vice Minister Dai Bingguo have been disappointing, the situation on the ground all along the border with China has been alarming. Having rapidly modernised the transport infrastructure in Tibet, and probably sensing a tactical advantage against India, the People8217;s Liberation Army has resorted to aggressive actions on the border.

It is worrisome that the Centre has been less than honest in sharing with the public the new turn of events on the border. The nation is only partly reassured by the UPA government8217;s reaffirmation that the entire state of Arunachal belongs to India and by the PM8217;s promises during his recent visit on accelerating the state8217;s integration with India. Whether it is the fear of offending its communist partners, who refuse to countenance anything unpleasant on China, or the furtiveness of the security bureaucracy, the government seems reluctant to reveal the gravity of the current situation. India paid a heavy price in 1962 for placing political correctness above truthfulness. If the UPA does not come clean with a comprehensive account of the situation on the China border, it is the duty of the opposition to demand it in the collective interests of the nation.