Chhattisgarh Congress trends ‘ChaukidarChineseHai’ hashtag in new bid to slam Modi on China
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Politics

Chhattisgarh Congress trends ‘ChaukidarChineseHai’ hashtag in new bid to slam Modi on China

Chhattisgarh Congress Monday started a Twitter campaign #ChaukidarChineseHai, and retweeted a number of posts with the same hashtag.

Neelam Pandey    
Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends a cabinet meeting Monday | Photo: ANI

File photo of PM Narendra Modi | ANI

New Delhi: The Congress Monday opened a new front in its criticism of PM Narendra Modi over his handling of the India-China tensions, with its Chhattisgarh unit addressing him as “Chinese” as part of a seemingly concerted Twitter campaign.

The official Twitter account of the Chhattisgarh Congress started a campaign called #ChaukidarChineseHai, and tweeted and retweeted a number of posts using the same hashtag. The hashtag is a derivation of the Congress’ “ChowkidarChorHai” campaign, which was used in light of the Rafale controversy to counter the PM’s description of himself as a “chowkidar (security guard)” against corruption ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

The Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Sevadal, a unit of the party, made a similar post in Hindi. [Translation: (They) got Sardar Patel’s statue built in China, and became the brand ambassador of Paytm, they sit on a swing with the Chinese president, the contract for roads and tunnel is given to Chinese company and (the PM) visited China nine times, because #ChaukidarChineseHai].

Former MLA Chunni Lal Sahu tweeted: “A friend of the Chinese is a traitor for the nation. #ChaukidarChineseHai.”

The Twitter handle of the Chhattisgarh Congress again used the hashtag as it retweeted a post by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, in which he shared a news report referring to Chinese media’s praise for Modi.

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‘Chowkidaar chor hai’

In the run-up to the Lok Sabha elections of 2019, the Congress had led a campaign under the slogan “Chowkidar chor hai” to allege corruption in the Rafale deal signed by the Modi government with France.

The latest hashtag campaign came in light of relentless criticism from the Congress for what it describes as Modi’s inept handling of the India-China stand-off in Ladakh, which led to the death of 20 soldiers last week.

On Sunday, Rahul had questioned the government for “surrendering” territory to China. The BJP hit back by calling him “traitor Gandhi”, among other things. 

On Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s predecessor Manmohan Singh said the Chinese have been “brazenly and illegally seeking to claim parts of Indian territory such as the Galwan Valley and the Pangong Tso by committing ‘multiple incursions between April 2020 till date’”. Modi, he added, cannot allow them to use his words as a “vindication of their position”. 

“Disinformation is no substitute for diplomacy or decisive leadership. Truth cannot be suppressed by having pliant allies spout comforting but false statements,” Singh said in an apparent reference to Modi’s “no intruder in Indian territory” claim at the all-party meeting on 19 June.

Modi’s statement was panned before the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) issued a clarification that alleged his remarks had been given a “mischievous interpretation”.

The BJP was quick to react, with party president J.P. Nadda posting a series of tweets criticising Manmohan Singh and the Congress for “insulting” the Indian forces and questioning their valour. 

 

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