Rahul Gandhi says Congress agrees with Modi govt's policy on the US, but not China

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said that the Congress party is in alignment with certain policies of the Modi government, including relationship with the US. He also spoke about Pakistan and said there was no way India would accept it carrying out acts of terrorism in the country. 

“I don’t see a big diversion…I don’t see Mr Modi diverting much from our approach to the US and I don’t see ourselves changing directions very much from what he’s doing. So I see continuity there. I think everybody on both sides of the equation accepts the fact that India-US relationship is key for both the countries,” said Rahul Gandhi in an interaction with the media at the National Press Club in Washington DC. 

Speaking about Pakistan, Gandhi said that India would never accept their instigation of terrorism in the country. This is in line with the government policy too. The Indian government has often said that there would be no talks with Pakistan till they deal with the threat and address the issue of terrorism. 

“Pakistan's instigation of terrorism in our country is holding the two countries back. We’re not going to accept Pakistan carrying out attacks on our country. We’re just not going to accept it, and as long as they continue doing that, there will be problems between us,” he said.

However, Gandhi said that the Congress was not in sync with the government’s policies on China. He said that Chinese troops have taken control of the Indian territory in Ladakh. “We’ve got Chinese troops occupying land the size of Delhi in Ladakh, and I think that’s a disaster. The media doesn’t like to write about it. How would America react if a neighbour occupied 4,000 square kilometers of its territory? Would any president be able to get away with saying he’s handled that well? So, I don’t think Mr. Modi has handled China well at all. I see no reason why Chinese troops should be sitting in our territory,” he said. 

Gandhi also spoke of India’s relationship with Bangladesh and said that his grandmother – former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi – was “deeply involved in the creation of Bangladesh”. He acknowledged India’s concerns about extremist elements in Bangladesh, and said that the party shares some of those concerns too. 

“However, I'm confident that things will stabilize in Bangladesh, and we will be able to have a relationship with the current government or any other government that follows. We raised the issue, and they also spoke to us. We are against any type of violence and want it to stop. It is the responsibility of the Bangladeshi government to end it as soon as possible. From our side, it is the responsibility of our government to apply pressure so that the violence stops,” he said.