Row over ITBP chief's Arunachal 'face-off' remark, Congress questions govt

A political row erupted on Friday over Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) chief Shatrujeet Kapur's purported remarks that the Shaurya platoon, an elite unit of the force, is successfully dealing with a “face-off in Arunachal Pradesh”.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh accused the government of remaining "silent on this grave issue". There was no immediate reaction by government officials or the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

In his address to the troops in Rajasthan's Alwar at a felicitation ceremony on Thursday, ITBP director general Kapur purportedly said: “In recent days, there was a situation in Arunachal Pradesh where there was a face-off at different locations, which is still continuing. There our Shaurya commando teams did really exceedingly well."

A video clip of his remarks is circulating widely online. The central armed force, which is tasked with guarding and patrolling the Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China, released the footage on social media late on Thursday night but later deleted it. HT has reached out to ITBP for comment. This article will be updated when there is a response.

Kapur did not explicitly name who the face-off was with but added, “ITBP started as a mountain guerrilla force, but since 2004 we have been guarding the Indo-China border."

Since July, there have been reports of a standoff with Chinese troops in the remote Taksin area of Upper Subansiri district. Asked about this in a press conference in August, foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said the state of border affairs has ramifications for overall India-China ties, adding that the two sides have agreed to use existing diplomatic and military mechanisms to “avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation” along the border.

Congress asks questions

After portions of Kapur's remarks appeared online, the Congress party sharpened its attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government.

“While on one hand, the Prime Minister, who bows to China, continues the ongoing saga of making concessions, in the meantime, the Director General of the ITBP has commended the force's performance in the recent clashes with the Chinese PLA within Indian territory in Arunachal Pradesh, which is absolutely justified,” Congress leader Ramesh said in a long post on X.

"...what kind of nationalism is this softness toward China and the growing economic dependence?" he asked, accusing the government of being “silent” on the matter.

The government has in the past rejected the Congress's allegations of bowing down to Beijing, saying it was committed to protecting India's borders.

At the same time, BJP functionaries have accused the Congress of politicising national security issues. They have also hit back at the opposition party, saying Jawaharal Nehru ceded ground to China.

India and China have attempted to rebuild their relationship after reaching an understanding in October 2024 to end a military standoff in Ladakh that lasted more than four years and took ties to a six-decade low. Chinese President Xi Jinping made his first visit to India in seven years to attend the BRICS Summit on September 12-13, and held a bilateral meeting with PM Modi to review ties.

Speaking at an Asia Society event in New York in late September, external affairs minister S Jaishankar said India-China ties were better today than they were a couple of years ago.

ITBP chief's advice

In Alwar, during his address at the felicitation ceremony, ITBP chief Kapur also advised the troops to avoid drinking alcohol and getting “honey trapped” on social media.

“Those who make reels should be careful. I would say avoid social media. Our adversaries keep an eye on your social media accounts. Even when you share one photo on your profile, they get a lot of information. Do not talk to people you do not know. Use social media and apps, but don’t get used,” he said.