Congress` Sonia Gandhi, Opposition leaders protest near Parliament demanding debate on China clash

Opposition MPs are expected to protest outside the Gandhi Statue in Parliament, demanding a discussion on national security and the Indo-China border dispute., details below.

New Delhi: Malikarjun Kharge, Congress President and Lok Sabha LoP, has called for a demonstration in front of the Gandhi statue in Parliament today to demand a discussion on China. There will be 12 parties involved. Opposition parties will protest at the Gandhi statue in Parliament on Wednesday, demanding a discussion of the latest Chinese violations in Arunachal Pradesh. The Opposition has suggested that the Centre is not allowing a debate since it is "hiding something". Meanwhile, according to a Congress leader, 12 opposition parties will participate in Wednesday's demonstration. On Tuesday, Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh requested the Centre's opinion on the infractions and inquired as to why the Chinese Ambassador had not been sent a demarche. 

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) MP Sanjay Raut responded to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's remarks in Parliament on Tuesday, saying, "True, the Congress party made the most significant contribution to the country's freedom. Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose was a member of the Congress Party. All of the names associated with our freedom movement, including as Sardar Patel and Mahatma Gandhi, were leaders of the Congress." In a stinging attack on the BJP, Kharge said his party's leaders gave their lives for the country, querying whether saffron party leaders did the same. "Did any of your dogs die in the service of their country? Was any (saffron) family member willing to make a sacrifice? No!" In a no-holds-barred attack on the BJP over the India-China border dispute, Kharge remarked in the Rajya Sabha.

In response to Kharge's statement, the Rajya Sabha MP stated, "Veer Savarkar and Bhagat Singh were revolutionary leaders who were not affiliated with any political party. They used to make a different kind of contribution to the revolution." Raut expressed his support for Congress by saying, "So many of our national heroes were executed or imprisoned. We may disagree with Congress, but the freedom movement occurred under the leadership of Congress." "This is history; no one can change it," stated the MP. "How would you alter Lokmanya Tilak's legacy? Indira Gandhi was also imprisoned "He continued. The Shiv Sena MP attacked the BJP, saying, "You may build a new Parliament, rename Rajpath, modify textbooks, but you cannot change history."

(With agencies input)