Arunachal MP stands by Chinese incursion statement

Congress member of Parliament from Arunachal Pradesh Nabam Rebia had recently alleged in the Rajya Sabha that Chinese soldiers, who frequently cross over to India through Tawang, had damaged a statue of Lord Buddha on October 30 this year.

Rebia's comments have caused major embarrassment to the government which maintains that China has not violated the McMahon line, the international border between India and China, in recent times.

"I understand the incident took place soon after the flag meeting between the two commanders. Instead of restoring the statue at its original place, I was told that the Indian Army has shifted the statue," Rebia told rediff.com in an interview before leaving for his home state.

According to sources, the Buddha statue, located at Bomlai in Tawang district, was demolished on October 30.

"The Chinese troops have 96,000 sq km of Indian territory under their control. Incidentally, the Chinese do not accept the McMohan line as an international border," the MP charged.

Though the Bharatiya Janata Party has frequently raised the issue of Chinese incursions in Parliament, Rebia was the first MP from the ruling Congress party to support the allegation.

"The government needs to expedite developments on our side because the Chinese have built roads right up to the McMahon line. I hope the government takes some concrete steps to tackle the issue. Recently, when the people learnt that the home minister was scheduled to visit Arunachal Pradesh, some of them asked whether it was the Chinese or the Indian home minister," he added in a lighter vein.