China is threat number one: Fernandes

Describing the National Democratic Alliance government's decision to recognise Tibet as a part of China as an 'error', former Defence Minister George Fernandes has said the Communist nation was the 'potential threat number one' to India and flayed the United Progressive Alliance dispensation for allowing it to be 'bullied'.

Venting anger over the Tibet crisis and India's response to it, the NDA leader said the Olympic torch should not be allowed to come to India and that he had asked his 'colleagues' and others to make 'whatever effort' to prevent the flame's run in India.

"It was not a mistake but an error. It should not have been done," he said about India's decision to recognise Tibet as part of China during the previous Atal Bihari Vajpayee government in which he was the Defence Minister.

Fernandes told Karan Thapar's Devil's Advocate programme on CNN-IBN that China is 'still the potential threat number one' and 'could become an enemy', as he recalled his statement on similar lines years ago.

Commenting on the recent incident of Indian Ambassador Nirupama Rao being summoned by the Chinese Foreign Ministry past midnight, Fernandes said New Delhi had 'surrendered' over the issue.

"Well, our government allowed it. It has no shame," he said, adding that the government should have advised its envoy to wait till the next day.

"Elsewhere that is what would have happened."

Rao was summoned past midnight to register concern over breach of security at Chinese Embassy in New Delhi.

"India has sold out to China," he alleged.

The former Defence Minister said India's attitude towards China was because of the 1962 war.

"I have a feeling that what happened in 1962 is still affecting people's mind and they can't get out of it," he said.

Fernandes also took exception at the Chinese government lauding India for its handling of the Tibetan protests in the country.

"It is a disgrace that China should say that India has done well," he said.

He termed as 'inadequate' India's response expressing distress at the events in Tibet, saying New Delhi 'should have shown more courage'.

On Indo-Pak relations, Fernandes said he had a 'series of secret dinners' with Pakistan High Commissioner to India Ashraf Jahangir Qazi in the run up to the 2001 Agra summit.

The series of meetings, he said, helped improve the relationship between India and Pakistan.

Fernandes said the decision of the then NDA government to expel Qazi in 2002 in the aftermath of the attack on Parliament was a 'mistake'.