It’s time for a reality check on China. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh visited Beijing last month and, after his return, toured Arunachal Pradesh. China lost no time in conveying its regret over the PM’s trip to Arunachal, but India remains reluctant to convey that his visit underlined India’s position on the boundary issue. Instead, the effort is to delink the two. At a consultative committee meeting last week, External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee told the members, “The PM visited Arunachal Pradesh at the end of last month. His visit there was not linked in any manner to his official visit to China.” He went on to add that the trip was aimed at assuring the people there that the Centre was mindful of their “developmental” needs.
