India - China: Relations And Developments-2

[dhu]

<!--QuoteBegin-->QUOTE<!--QuoteEBegin--><b>Nehru had recognised Tibet as part of China: Rajnath</b>

SATNA (MP): Giving a new twist to ongoing controversy over India's approach to the Tibet issue, BJP on Tuesday said that New Delhi had accepted Tibet as part of China in 1953 during the government of then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

"The (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee government did not make any mistake on the issue," BJP president Rajnath Singh said, while commenting on former Defence Minister George Fernandes' statement that the previous NDA government had recognised Tibet as part of China, committing an "error".

"It was Nehru who made a mistake on the Tibet issue in 1953... Jawaharlal Nehru had recognised Tibet as part of China in 1953 and the successive governments are following it," Singh told reporters here.

BJP has been critical of the UPA government's response to the recent unrest in Tibet, saying the approach had been "shameful".

"The government has been having a very weak stand on the Tibet issue only because of the pressure from the Left parties. It is an appeasement towards China and the government has no regard for the country's honour," Singh said.

Left parties have, however, said the government's policy on Tibet has been correct.

The BJP chief condemned the Chinese crackdown on the protesters in Tibet and asked Beijing to show "maximum restraint" in handling the situation there.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->