New Delhi:
India is fuming over China rejecting a proposal by the Ministry of Defence to send a top Indian Army officer on a visit to that country. China said he was unwelcome because he is serving in Jammu and Kashmir and Beijing is now believed to be in damage-control mode.
New Delhi has made clear that China saying Lt-General B S Jaswal, the Army's General Officer Commander-in-Chief, Northern Command, was not welcome is unacceptable, government sources said.
Ministry of Defence sources said Beijing had refused to allow General Jaswal's visit because he "controlled" Jammu & Kashmir, a state that China maintains is disputed. General Jaswal's visit was to have been a regular high-level exchange trip to China this August.
The sources said Beijing possibly did not expect India to react strongly, and there were indications that China was now trying to make amends.
India is waiting and watching. Defence ties are on hold, but have not been cancelled, the sources said.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has said dialogue with China these issues is on. India, the ministry said, valued its exchanges with China and there must be sensitivity to each other's concerns.
Meanwhile, both Congress and BJP have reacted to this controversy.
"I am sure the MEA will take cognizance of this matter. Both India and China must respect the sensitivities of each other," said Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari.
The BJP wants India to take it up at the highest level. "The MEA should urgently take up this issue with China. It is a very serious matter. India should express displeasure," said BJP spokesperson Prakash Jawadekar.
While the MEA is inclined to cautiously downplay the row, the Army and the Ministry of Defence are furious, letting the Chinese know bluntly that this is unacceptable.