Mani Shankar Aiyar's '1962 Chinese invasion' comment sparks row, Congress distances itself after BJP ire

Speaking at an event, Aiyar was heard saying, '... In October 1962, the Chinese allegedly invaded India."

Slamming Aiyar, BJP IT Cell head Amit Malviya posted on X, "Mani Shankar Aiyar, speaking at the FCC, during launch of a book called Nehru’s First Recruits, refers to Chinese invasion in 1962 as ‘alleged’. This is a brazen attempt at revisionism.

"Nehru gave up India’s claim on permanent seat at the UNSC in favour of the Chinese, Rahul Gandhi signed a secret MoU, Rajiv Gandhi Foundation accepted funds from the Chinese Embassy and published reports recommending market access for Chinese companies, based on them, Sonia Gandhi’s UPA opened up Indian market for Chinese goods, hurting MSMEs and now Congress leader Aiyar wants to whitewash the Chinese invasion, post which the Chinese have been in illegal occupation of 38,000 sq km of Indian territory. What explains Congress’s love for the Chinese?"

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said Aiyar apologised for his "mistake" and the party has distanced from the comment.

Ramesh posted on X, "Mr. Mani Shankar Aiyar has subequently apologised unreservedly for using the term "alleged invasion" mistakenkly. Allowances must be made for his age. The INC distances itself from his original phraseology.

"The Chinese invasion of India that began on October 20 1962 was for REAL. So too were the Chinese incursions in Ladakh in early May 2020 in which 20 of our soldiers were martyred and the status quo disturbed."

"The outgoing PM, however, gave a clean chit publicly to the Chinese on June 19th 2020, seriously weakening our negotiating position. 2000 sq km of territory including Depsang and Demchok remain out of bounds for Indian troops," he added.

Mani Shankar Aiyar stirs row with 'Pakistan won't drop bomb if India shows respect to them' comment

Mani Shankar Aiyar had earlier said India's hostile neighbour Pakistan will not resort to bombings if they are shown respect.

Aiyar said India should take efforts to initiate dialogues with Pakistan in a bid to solve problems instead of flashing its nuclear capabilities.

In an interview, Aiyar says, "Pakistan is a sovereign country. It also has respect. India should talk to Pakistan. The weapons won't help. Pakistan has an atom bomb, so do we have. If a madman drops a bomb in Lahore, its radioactivity will reach Amritsar in 8 seconds."

"Pakistan won't think about bombing if India talks to them and pays them respect... If someone is Vishwaguru, he needs to show his efforts to solve problems related to Pakistan. All initiatives to make dialogues have stopped for the last 10 years," the Congress veteran was heard saying in the viral video.