Govt confident of its steps over Dokalam: MoS PMO Jitendra Singh

Minister said India was giving a 'befitting reply' to China along the Indo-Pak border

Press Trust of India  |  Jammu 

Doklam standoff, Doklam, Sikkim Standoff, Line of Actual Control, LAC, Doklam bowl, Indian Army, India, China, Bhutan

Union minister on Saturday played down the heightened rhetoric by over the standoff, stating that India was fully equipped to face any challenge.

He said the was confident about the steps it was taking in this regard.

"We are well equipped to face any challenge whether externally or internally," Singh told reporters.

The MoS PMO was responding to a question about the recent 'threat' by through its official media asking India to withdraw troops from the sector.

"I think for us the more important thing is to see what we are doing. I am not here to respond to what somebody is tweeting from the opposition parties. We are confident about what we are doing," he said.

had recently said that it had conveyed its firm stand to India that it must take "concrete actions" by immediately pulling back troops from Doklam in the section with "no strings attached" to resolve the current standoff.

The leader also said that the was giving "befitting reply" with regard to ceasefire violations on the Indo-Pakistan border, and was dealing with terrorism in Kashmir with a "stern hand".

On the appearance of militant Zakir Musa's posters in Kashmir asking youths and students to keep away from Independence day functions, Singh said such posters have come up in the past too.

"The will take a call on this. The more these (terrorist) leaders come up with such things, the more they expose themselves. The youths cannot be threatened by the diktats of these militants," he said.

The Union minister also hailed the "proactive" role of security forces on the borders.

"It is going to reap results sooner or later. I am sure this (proactive role of forces) will bring terrorism to its logical conclusion," he said.

Singh also emphasised that the Centre's stand on Article 35A granting special autonomous status to Jammu and Kashmir was clear.

"BJP's stand on Article 35A is clear. The Opposition is waiting in the wings for this coalition (in the state) to fall. We will not oblige them," he said.

Replying to a question on Uttar Pradesh governor directing all madrasas to sing the song on Independence day, Singh said, "Vande Mataram is a symbol of India's ethos. It is, therefore, wrong to associate it with any particular religion or sect".

"We need to educate the masses on this more intensely. Vande Mataram was composed in 1870. It later become a song in tribute to martyrs, irrespective of religion. It is a poem which became an unifying force in pre-Independence and post-Independence era. How can this be a dividing force? It has been wrongly perceived".

On the recent infant deaths at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh for want of oxygen, the Union minister said, "I am sure there is a responsible in the state. We have a CM who is extremely proactive. Whatever is required, will be done. What has happened is bad and all of us feel for it.