'We should not criticise our jawans': EAM S Jaishankar slams Rahul Gandhi's 'pitaai' remark amid China border row

EAM S Jaishankar said that he is not against political criticism by the opposition but urged the opposition leaders to not criticise the army jawans.

Rahul Gandhi had allegedly said that jawans are being beaten by Chinese soldiers in Arunachal Pradesh.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar today slammed the Congress over their comments with regard to the Indian Army amid the ongoing border row with China. Speaking in the Lok Sabha, Jaishankar said that he is not against political criticism by the opposition but urged the opposition leaders to not criticise the army jawans. Jaishankar also said that India has been pushing China for de-escalation and disengagement at the border while openly accepting that Sino-India ties are not in a good phase.

"If we were indifferent to China, why are we today pressing China on disengagement and de-escalation? Why are we saying publicly that our ties are not normal? We have no problem if there are political differences or there is even political criticism, I have heard some time that my own understanding needs to be deepened, when I see who is giving the advice, I can only bow and respect. But, I think, we should not, directly or indirectly, criticise our jawans. Our jawans are standing in Yangtse at 13 thousand feet, defending our border. They do not deserve to have the word 'pitaai'. The word 'pitaai' should not be used for our jawans. Our jawans are standing their ground, they should be respected, they should be honoured, appreciated," said Jaishankar.

"Don't criticise our Jawans, respect them", says EAM Jaishankar in Lok Sabha; Highlights, 'if we wr indifferent to China who sent the Indian Army to border.." pic.twitter.com/3kyIi1quWH — Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) December 19, 2022

It may be noted that two days ago, Rahul Gandhi allegedly said that jawans are being beaten by Chinese soldiers in Arunachal Pradesh. He was criticising the BJP government for failing to stop Chinese aggression.

Earlier today, during an India-Japan conclave in New Delhi, Jaishankar said that the Indian Army will not let China change the status quo along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) "unilaterally" and its current deployment along the frontier was not seen before.