China, Pakistan together; planning a ‘surprise’ for India: Rahul Gandhi

In a conversation with Army veterans, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said China and Pakistan are together and are planning a ‘surprise’ for India, reported Hindustan Times on 25 December.

Sharing his opinion, Gandhi said if here is any war, it will be against both of them. The video was released by Rahul Gandhi's YouTube channel on Sunday.

"India's border situation is linked with the international situation and the border situation is changing... We used to have two enemies - China and Pakistan and our policy was to keep them separate," Rahul Gandhi said adding that this was the idea behind the foreign policy.

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“When Rajiv Gandhi ji went there, he also tried that these two (Pakistan and China) do not get together. Earlier, people used to say there should be no two-front war. Then came the concept of a two-and-a-half-front war -- China, Pakistan and terrorism,” Rahul Gandhi said.

Adding the examples of Gwadar, the Belt and Road Initiative, Gandhi said, "“Now there is only one front because China and Pakistan are together not only militarily but economically as well."

"China's economic system is advancing very fast while our economic situation is going downhill after 2014," Rahul Gandhi said.

"There is disturbance, fights, confusion and hatred inside our country. We still have the mindset of a two-and-a-half-front war. We don't have the mindset of joint operability or cyber warfare. India is now extremely vulnerable. China and Pakistan are both preparing a surprise for us. That is why I keep repeating that the government can not keep quiet. The government must inform the entire country what happened on the border. And we have to start taking action today, though we should have started five years ago," Rahul Gandhi said.

"If we don't take immediate action, the country will be hurt. I am extremely concerned about what is happening on the borders of Arunachal and Ladakh. And I think Galwan and Doklam are linked and they are part of a Chinese strategy to sooner or later hit us jointly with Pakistan," Rahul Gandhi added.

Gandhi's statement comes amid a row over his earlier 'pitai' remark where he said Chinese soldiers thrashed Indian troops in Tawang on December 9.

In that video, Gandhi was seen saying expressing his respect and love for Indian Army as well. "I don't just have respect for you but also love and affection for you. You defend this nation. This nation would not exist without you," Rahul Gandhi said to the Army veterans.