India, China disengagement: Beijing begins disengaging troops from LAC; will Rahul Gandhi stop attacking Narendra Modi govt now?

In a breakthrough after a nine-month India-China border standoff, Defence Minister Singh had announced in Parliament that India and China have reached an agreement on disengagement in the North and South banks of Pangong Lake in eastern Ladakh that mandates both sides to "cease" forward deployment of troops in a "phased, coordinated and verifiable" manner.

New Delhi: A day after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh made a statement in Parliament that India, China has commenced the process of disengagement of troops in eastern Ladakh, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has yet again made a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that the government has “conceded land’’ to China.

Addressing a press conference, Rahul Gandhi said, "Indian territory was up to Finger 4, why the troops have been withdrawn to Finger 3?" The Congress party MP from Kerala’s Wayanad claimed that the situation about the ‘Depsang Plains, Gogra-Hot Springs is not clear.’

The Gandhi scion said the status quo ante prior to April 2020 should be restored and Prime Minister Narendra Modi should answer the country. "It is the responsibility of the Prime Minister to protect the territory of this country. How he does it, is his problem, not mine," Rahul Gandhi said.

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In a breakthrough after a nine-month border standoff, Defence Minister Singh had announced in Parliament on Thursday that India and China have reached an agreement on disengagement in the North and South banks of Pangong Lake in eastern Ladakh that mandates both sides to "cease" forward deployment of troops in a "phased, coordinated and verifiable" manner.

Singh had also shared the details of the pact to defuse the tense military face-off in eastern Ladakh that severely strained ties between the two Asian giants. The Defence Minister told the lawmakers in Rajya Sabha that the armed forces will return to the command post and added, "Not an inch of land will be given and nothing has been lost since the face-off."

"The sustained talks with China have led to the agreement on the disengagement on the north and south banks of Pangong Lake. After the agreement, India-China will remove forward deployments in a phased and coordinated manner.

"China will keep its troops to the east of the Finger 8 in the north of Pangong Lake. India will keep its troops at its permanent base near Finger 3," said Rajnath Singh. The Defence Minister also hailed the Indian troops and reiterated that the Indian armed forces remain committed to peace and stability at the LAC and New Delhi wants an amicable resolution of the India-China border row.

He added that the Indian armed forces dealt with the situation in eastern Ladakh ''effectively and maintained their edge''. Counter to the allegations made by Rahul Gandhi, several leading TV news channels showed visuals showing China withdrawing its troops and pulling back its tanks to the east of Finger 8 areas in the northern bank of Pangong Lake.

China retreating troops from the Pangong Lake Region was seen as a significant step by the two armies as a significant step to dial down tensions in the key face-off site, under the Sino-India-China agreement on disengagement in eastern Ladakh.

The pictures and visuals of both India and China troops and tanks disengaging from the banks of Pangong Lake area in eastern Ladakh were released on Thursday. The troops had been deployed opposite each other for almost ten months. 

During the nine rounds of military talks, India was specifically insisting on the withdrawal of Chinese troops from Finger 4 to Finger 8 on the North bank of Pangong Lake. The mountain spurs in the area are referred to as Fingers.