New Delhi [India], Oct. 2 : Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Sunday criticized China for putting a technical "hold" on declaring Jaish-e- Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar a global terrorist for three more months during United Nations Security Council deliberations.
He urged China to avoid being a selective or partisan in its approach and further asked the Indian government to be proactive in its approach regarding diversion of the Brahmaputra river.
China and India, he said, should resolve the river issue in the larger interest of having a strategic and cooperative partnership.
"No country in the world, irrespective of where terrorism emanates from, can have a selective or partisan approach.
It has to be condemned and confronted in entirety. I m sure that India along with other countries will take it up. China should not even by default provide any kind of cover or protection to a known terrorist who heads a terrorist outfit, who would have been named by the United Nations and listed as such but for this cover and protection," he said.
"It is most unfortunate, there cannot be any compromise when it comes to terrorism, which is a global threat, and China itself ought to fully register the seriousness of the challenge posed by terrorism organizations and the big syndicate that operates from this region," he added.
On the issue of diversion of Brahmaputra river water by China, Sharma said that both countries have been talking about this for a while, and it is the duty of China to ensure that there is no diversion of water as has been the understanding reached and assurances given in the past.
"The flow of water has to be regularly monitored. Since this is a new development, the concerned ministry and the Government of India should urgently examine the position as to what impact will be caused by these diversions and effectively take it up.
We both bilaterally China and India, will be able to amicably resolve this issue and all other issues in the larger interest of a strategic and cooperative partnership," he said.
China on Saturday extended its technical "hold" on Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Masood Azhar for a further three months in the UN Security Council's 1267 Committee.
The "hold" is on an international move to ban the Jaish-e-Mohammed leader by the UN. The JeM as an organization is already on the proscribed list. But in March this year, China put a technical "hold" on the move to put sanctions on Azhar. The resolution to ban him was co-sponsored by the US, UK, France and India, with 14 other countries acquiescing.
China was the only one to block it with a technical hold. On Friday, China said it was blocking the Xiabuqu river, one of the many tributaries of the Yarlung Zangbo, (which is how the Brahmaputra is known in China) to build a dam as part of the Lalho hydroelectric project at Xigase in the Tibet Autonomous Region.
The Brahmaputra, one of India's major rivers, originates in Tibet and flows into Arunachal Pradesh and Assam before going into Bangladesh.
India will keep a close watch on the flow in the Brahmaputra river in coming weeks after China announced it was blocking one of its tributaries in Tibet to construct the country's most expensive hydroelectric projects.
Source: ANI
