New Delhi: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju today tweeted a photo with Indian Army soldiers from Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh to make a point against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who had yesterday blamed PM Narendra Modi's government for "our jawans being assaulted... our land being taken by China". Tawang, where a border clash recently took place, is part of Mr Rijiju's Lok Sabha constituency.
"Yangtse area in Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh is fully secured now due to adequate deployment of the brave jawans of Indian Army," he wrote with the photo, and then shared some more photos from the area.
Furthering the BJP line in another tweet in the thread, he said Rahul Gandhi is "not only insulting Indian Army but damaging [the] nation's image".
Rahul Gandhi had alleged on Friday that while China is preparing for a war. the Indian government is "asleep" and trying to ignore the threat. Speaking in Hindi, he also alleged that China has taken away 2,000 square kilometres of Indian territory, killed 20 Indian soldiers, and is "beating our jawans in Arunachal Pradesh".
Mr Rijiju hit back today: "[Rahul Gandhi] is not only a problem for the Congress Party but he has also become a huge embarrassment [for] the country. We are proud of our Armed Forces."
One of his tweets also carried a video that showed a part of Mr Gandhi's comments and some people telling news agency ANI that he "spoke wrong".
Congress and other Opposition members have been demanding a discussion on the border issue and India's foreign policy, but the government has been cagey and the parliament chairpersons have cited "rules and conventions" to not allow a discussion on "such a sensitive issue".
Rahul Gandhi made his assertions at a press conference in Rajasthan, where his Kanyakumari-to-Kashmir 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' — scheduled to conclude next year — hit the 100-day mark.