The Congress on Friday demanded that Union Home Minister Amit Shah make a statement over the purported video of confrontation between Indian shepherds and China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the Kakjung area of Ladakh.

Posing a volley of questions to the home minister, the party asked if any effort is being taken to protect the Indian shepherds from the Chinese “harassment’’.

In a statement, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said, “The Ministry of External Affairs’ (MEA) weak response to the recent video showing PLA troops harassing and blocking shepherds’ access to grazing areas in the Chushul sector is par for the course for the Modi government. The MEA spokesperson reportedly stated that both countries are well aware of their respective traditional grazing zones. Any spat, controversy, or dispute is dealt with the established mechanism.”

Attacking the ruling dispensation, Ramesh, who is also the Congress’ MP in Rajya Sabha said, “Regarding established mechanisms, we have seen how the Narendra Modi government has failed to prevent the Chinese from denying our troops and graziers access to 2,000 square kilometres of territory in eastern Ladakh for the past four years, despite 18 rounds of military talks.”

Asserting that the MEA and the defence ministry are not the only authorities involved in the matter, the parliamentarian said, “Border management comes under the Ministry of Home Affairs. It is the responsibility of the home ministry to ensure that Indian graziers are able to exercise their rights as citizens inside the Indian territory.”

“How many instances have there been since May 2020 of our graziers being harassed or pushed back by Chinese border guards within our perception of the LAC? Have our graziers suffered any injuries or material losses in these encounters? Has there been any effort to protect them from Chinese harassment or are they forced to defend themselves with no support from the ITBP as it appeared in the video? We demand answers to these questions by Home Minister Amit Shah,” he said.

Earlier after the video of the reported incident surfaced, the Congress said, “For four years, the Modi government has tried to cover up the worst territorial setback in six decades for India with its ‘DDLJ’ approach: deny, distract, lie and justify. Chinese troops continue to deny Indian patrols access to the strategic Depsang Plains, Demchok and other areas in eastern Ladakh. China continues to deny us access to 2,000 square kilometres despite 18 rounds of military talks.”

“This video is only the latest example of Ladakhi sources on the ground puncturing the Modi government’s false narrative. These sources previously exposed how Indian troops have lost access to 26 out of 65 patrolling points and that the Modi government has agreed to buffer zones in which India cedes further territory,” it added.