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In The Media

The Double-speak of Parties on Foreign Funding

The latest crisis between China and India has set off an unseemly round of finger-pointing between the Bharatiya Janata Party and its principal national rival, the Congress, with both sides accusing the other of cozying up to the communist regime.

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By Milan Vaishnav
Published on Jul 1, 2020

Source: Hindustan Times

As India’s border stand-off with China continues, the latter’s aggressive manoeuvres raise difficult questions about India’s diplomatic options, foreign partnerships, and future defence requirements. But the latest crisis has also set off an unseemly round of finger-pointing between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its principal national rival, the Congress, with both sides accusing the other of cosying up to the communist regime.

In response to Opposition barbs that the Narendra Modi government’s China policy has been tantamount to “appeasement”, the BJP unearthed evidence that Beijing had previously funnelled money into the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, a Congress-affiliated brain trust. Caught on the back foot, the Congress took the airwaves to argue that several politically-connected Chinese firms — from Huawei to Xiaomi — have donated millions of rupees to the Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES).

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This article was originally published in the Hindustan Times.

About the Author

Milan Vaishnav

Director and Senior Fellow, South Asia Program

Milan Vaishnav is a senior fellow and director of the South Asia Program and the host of the Grand Tamasha podcast at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. His primary research focus is the political economy of India, and he examines issues such as corruption and governance, state capacity, distributive politics, and electoral behavior. He also conducts research on the Indian diaspora.

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Carnegie India does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

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