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Jaishankar defends Article 370 move & CAA, says they’re aimed at solving legacy of problems

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar cited China as an example for India, saying it had become a superpower by resolving problems facing them.

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New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar Monday sought to defend some of the Modi government’s controversial decisions such as the revocation of Article 370 and the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), saying that a lot of the steps taken were aimed at solving “a legacy of problems” accumulated over decades.

“Today, we have accumulated a legacy of problems, and if you see today what is happening in this country, these problems have caught up with us… A lot of what we are doing are accumulation of problems which we have not addressed,” he said, speaking in Delhi at the launch of a book — Pax Sinica: Implications for the Indian Dawn — authored by Samir Saran and Akhil Deo of the think-tank Observer Research Foundation.

“Just look at the citizenship issue, the citizenship issue started 40-50 years ago, Rajiv Gandhi did an agreement in Assam in 1980s, fine. You look at 370, it was a temporary Article… went on for 70 years. Look at Ayodhya, show me where in the world you will have an unresolved problem for 150 years,” he added.

He cited China as an example for India, saying it had become a superpower by resolving problems facing them.

“We are in that journey (like China) from a civilisational society to a modern state… The difference between us is that they look at a problem and start thinking how to solve the problems,” Jaishankar added. “That is a systematic mindset. Those who solve it quickly are being rewarded.”

India, on the contrary, let problems pester for decades, he said.

The Goods and Services Tax (GST), introduced in 2017 as a comprehensive tax regimen that subsumed several indirect taxes, was a step in the same direction, Jaishankar added.

“It was blindingly obvious that we need a single tax system and yet people kept kicking it down the road,” he said.

Replying to a question at the event, Jaishankar also defended India’s decision to allow a Pakistani team, including ISI officers, to join the investigation into the 2016 terrorist attack at Pathankot Air Force Station.

“When Pathankot happened, even the Pakistanis accepted who was the perpetrator. Nawaz Sharif (then Pakistan PM) didn’t deny,” Jaishankar said. The Modi government, he added, knew “who’s the victim and who’s the perpetrator”.


Also Read: Art in the time of CAA-NRC protests: India is seeing a creative renaissance under Modi & Shah


JNU violence

An alumnus of JNU, Jaishankar also referred to Sunday’s night’s violence at the premier university’s campus. “When I studied in JNU we did not see any tukde-tukde gang there,” he said.

Tukde-tukde gang” is a popular moniker Right-wingers use for Left-aligned JNU students. It’s rooted in allegations that a 2016 protest on the campus against Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru’s execution involved slogans seeking India’s disintegration.

On India-China relationship

Jaishankar also espoused leader-to-leader engagement between India and China, since Beijing now has an “important leader” at the helm.

“It is important for us to understand the thinking of China and because today you have a strong leader in China, it is important there is a leader-to-leader understanding of each other’s thinking,” he said. “That doesn’t mean every time they meet problems will get solved.” 

He said the reason why Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi held two informal summits in Wuhan (2018) and Mamallapuram (2019) was to have an open discussion without any “scripted bureaucratic preparation”.


Also read: HRD ministry meets JNU officials to take stock, Vice-Chancellor skips meeting


This report has been updated with additional information

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17 COMMENTS

  1. There are many diffences with China:
    1. Chinese party doesn’t have any official religion neither does it promote any particular religion.
    2. China has overwhelming 91% of Han ethnicity. India is a collection of hundreds of ethnicities with no one ethnicity having overwhelming majority.

    Following Chinese model selectively is not just stupid but counter productive to the unity and pride of India.

  2. If jaishankar and his bosses are all problem solvers like China, US and Russia, then how come today there are more problems in whole NE , J&K and with Pak terror than ever before ? How come the economy is in such an unforeseen mess ? How come there is not even an inch of progress on the India=China border question ? Of course it has to be admitted that UPA made little progress on China and on J&K, but at least NE was calm and no blunders were committed on the economy. Jaishankar’s ploy of projecting NDA as somehow superior in problem solving looks false. Nor can he blame UPA for any mess since NDA has had 6 years at the helm now.’

    • Oh Nityananda
      U want to solve all problems in one shot..
      NE will go no where because thy will find india more accomodative than monstrous china
      Taiwan,,Tibet,,all are their for study…Sense will prevail in NE…
      Try to learn history of Nagaland and the Kato Swu
      Being left liberal is the only way to wisdom,,,,
      History lot to teach u if have ears open ears and mind

      • OH GIRISH, NO CHINESE WOULD WANT TO LEAVE MONSTROUS CHINA TO LIVE IN ACCOMMODATIVE INDIA! AND NO INDIAN WOULD WANT TO LIVE IN INDIA, IF HE CAN LIVE IN MONSTROUS CHINA! THE CHINESE ARE WONDERING WHY INDIANS CAN’T FIGURE WHY THEY LIVE IN SO-CALLED MESSY AND CHAOTIC DEMOCRACY IN INDIA! INDIANS ARE ALSO DESPERATE TO GO TO OTHER COUNTRIES, INCLUDING EVEN THOSE IN CENTRAL ASIA, TO LIVE AND WORK THERE, AND ARE EVEN APPLYING FOR REFUGEE STATUS SO THAT THEY CAN LIVE THERE! NONE OF THOSE WOULD WANT TO COME BACK TO ACCOMMODATIVE INDIA! DIDN’T THE BANGLADESHI HIGH COMMISSIONER IN DELHI SAID THAT A BANGLADESHI WOULD PREFER TO TAKE A BOAT AND GO TO ITALY, RATHER THAN GO TO INDIA AS AN IMMIGRANT?

    • Lol, a lot is being solved, to solve the problem completely you need to take action against Muslim & xian groups who are Anti-India, like it happens in China.

      • Could this worthy gentleman please tell us how Christians are anti-India, when they have rendered the maximum services, and have in their ranks recipients of Paramvir Chakra, Mahavir Chakras and umpteen Vir Chakras, just too list a few.

  3. NDA ministers are failing big time one after another, which shows the rot at the top. Even a seasoned diplomat like Jaishankar behaved like a fool, by deciding to not meet US congress members. Art of diplomacy is meeting and convincing even those who disagree with you.

  4. The author writes “”Tukde-tukde gang” is a popular moniker Right-wingers use for Left-aligned JNU students. It’s rooted in allegations that a 2016 protest on the campus against Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru’s execution involved slogans seeking India’s disintegration.” Who are you trying to fool Nayanima? The sentence should read like this to be accurate: “”Tukde-tukde gang” is a popular moniker that the country uses for the extreme Left-wing JNU students. It’s rooted in the fact that a 2016 protest on the campus against Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru’s execution involved slogans seeking India’s disintegration”

  5. Great from FM JaiShankar!! Always say India should learn from China ( border issue aside), China has done many things good, India needs to do those. West can be a role model.

    • What role model West can be to India, that doesn’t believe what Modi ior Jaishankar says? America’s state dept. doesn’t believe that what Modi has done in Kashmir is India’s “internal matter” as Jaishankar keeps telling them! In reply it has said that what Modi has done in Kashmir has regional implications involving the neighbouring countries like Pakistan! That is why Trump kept saying he was ready to help mediate between India and Pakistan, in spite of Modi repeating that the matter was India’s “internal matter”, and no third party participation in it was warranted! AND YET TRUMP, BRUSHING ASIDE WHAT MODI WAS SAYING, KEPT SAYING HE WAS READY TO MEDIATE IN THE KASHMIR ISSUE! The US state dept. ahas also said that as far as America was concerned, the LoC was the de facto border between India and Pakistan! In fact that is the stance of the whole world! INDIA HAS FAILED TO CONVINCE A SINGLE COUNTRY IN THE WORLD THAT J&K IS PART OF INDIA! THE WHOLE WORLD SAYS J&K IS A DISPUTED TERRITORY! WHY JAISHANKAR HAS FAILED TO CONVINCE THE WORLD THAT J&K IS A PART OF INDIA? THE MAPS SHOWN BY THE COUNTRIES AND PUBLICATIONS SHOW J&K AS EITHER :”INDIA ADMINISTERED”, OR “PAKISTAN ADMINISTERED”! WHY?

      What good things China has done by occupying Aksai Chin in Ladakh, which India claims to be its territory? Is China going to give back that territory to India?

      • That because India got true party after 2014 it will take time, I want to say “can’t” in context of West being role model. West can’t be role model, but with China we can learn. What Aksai chin capture, it happened in 60s and it’s inhospitable land more accessible from Chinese side, this is said part. But remember we are not in any civilizational conflict with China, cannot say the same for Muslims or even xians.

        • India’s image has worsened since the “new party” came in power in 2014! If you see writings in prestigious foreign publications, they blame Modi personally for destroying secularism in India to establish a Hindu rashtra. The “new party” was talking as if it would fix every wrong the previous regime had done in no time! It already has more than 6 years now, and people are waiting. When is it going to take back Aksai Chin from China? How is it going to keep Arunachal, which China claims as its part? Economy was lot better during the previous regime. Now it is in gutter! Just today even the government admitted that it would grow only at 5% during this year! THAT MEANS THE PEOPLE WOULD BE OUT IN STREETS DEMANDING JOBS, AND A LOT OF OTHER THINGS! THE “NEW PARTY” TOLD THEM LIES THAT IT WOULD CREATE 2 CRORE JOBS EVERY YEARS FOR YEARS TIO COME TO ACCOMMODATE 1 MILLION NEW WORKERS JOINING THE WORKFORCE EVERY YEAR! WHATEVER HAPPENED TO ALL THAT SWEET TALK? WHILE THE PEOPLE ARE SUFFERING THE BOSS OF THE ‘NEW PARTY” IS TALKING ABOUT PAKISTAN, BALAKOT, AND OTHER NONSENSE TO DIVERT PEOPLE’S ATTENTION FROM REAL PROBLEMS! THIS IS NOT GOING TO HELP! THE BOSS IS TALKING ABOUT “NEW INDIA”. BUT NOW “OTHER NEW INDIA” HEADED BY THE STUDENTS AND THOSE WHO BELIEVE IN DEMOCRACY AND SECULARISM, IS BORN TO RIVAL THE BOSS’ OLD “NEW INDIA”!

  6. It would be a good step forward if Delhi Police swiftly complete their investigation into the Tukde Tukde speech. It is evident that Kanhaiya Kumar and some of his friends were not culpable, else charge sheets would have been filed. Who those nameless, faceless individuals were who made that hurtful speech is something that should be ascertained, established beyond doubt. Some people believe recordings of the speech were doctored. I personally don’t think a silly speech poses any substantive threat to our national security, any more than not rising for the national anthem in a darkened auditorium, especially if the viewer is physically challenged, is a hanging offence. 2. What I pray for is that the masked bandits who indulged in shameful activity do not melt into the darkness, as the slogan chanters have. They should be hunted down – using facial recognition and other technology – and brought to justice.

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