‘Callously gave away isle’ — Modi invokes Katchatheevu, Congress calls it ‘distortion of history’

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New Delhi: Katchatheevu, a 285-acre uninhabited isle in the Palk Strait, returned to the national political discourse after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi cited “new facts” to criticise the then Congress government for ceding the isle to Sri Lanka through maritime agreements in 1974-76.

The Congress, in turn, responded to the criticism by terming the series of events cited by Modi as a “twisted and distorted” version of history. 

“Eye opening and startling! New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away Katchatheevu,” Modi wrote earlier Sunday in a post on X, referring to a report published in the Times of India which cites documents obtained by Tamil Nadu BJP chief K. Annamalai through an RTI application to detail how “Indira Gandhi ceded” the island to Sri Lanka.

“This has angered every Indian and reaffirmed in people’s minds — we can’t ever trust Congress! Weakening India’s unity, integrity and interests has been Congress’ way of working for 75 years and counting,” Modi added.

This is not the first time that Modi invoked Katchatheevu to corner the Opposition. During a speech in Parliament in August last year, he quipped: “Katchatheevu is an island between Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka. Somebody gave it to another country. It happened under the leadership of Indira Gandhi… Wasn’t that part of Maa Bharati there?”

The Katchatheevu issue has long been a political hot potato, especially in Tamil Nadu where regional parties continue to demand that India retrieve the isle. The demand was raised as recently as this month by the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in its manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls slated to begin on 19 April.

Taking a cue from Modi, BJP chief J.P. Nadda too lashed out at the then Congress government for relinquishing India’s claim to the isle. “This is appalling but frankly, it isn’t surprising. It is a part of Congress’ work culture to give up Indian territory given the slightest opportunity,” he wrote on X.

“Slow claps for Congress! They willingly gave up #Katchatheevu and had no regrets about it either. Sometimes an MP of the Congress speaks about dividing the nation and sometimes they denigrate Indian culture and traditions. This shows that they are against the unity and integrity of India,” wrote Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

The reference was directed at Congress MP D.K. Suresh who in February this year stoked a controversy by saying that southern states would be forced to demand a “separate nation” if they are not treated at par with states in other parts of India.

 

Responding to the criticism, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in a post on X addressed to Modi wrote, “You have suddenly woken up to the issues of territorial integrity and national security in your 10th year of misrule. Perhaps, elections are the trigger. Your desperation is palpable.”

He likened the agreements on Katchatheevu to the 2015 land boundary agreement between India and Bangladesh, calling both a kind of “friendly gesture”. He also said that the then Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi had submitted to the Supreme Court in 2014 that “Katchatheevu went to Sri Lanka by an agreement in 1974… How can it be taken back today? If you want Katchatheevu back, you will have to go to war to get it back.”

“Pradhan Mantri ji, you should tell, did your Govt take ANY steps to resolve this issue and take back Katchatheevu,” asked Kharge

Congress MP Jairam Ramesh, who is also the party’s general secretary in charge of communications, alleged the RTI application filed by Annamalai received “VVIP treatment” while “lakhs” of others are “ignored or rejected”.

“Unable to answer to his own poor record of national security, and faced with getting exactly ZERO seats in Tamil Nadu, the PM and his drumbeaters have become desperate,” Ramesh wrote in a post on X.

“History is twisted and distorted. Congress leaders are defamed, ignoring the circumstances and contexts in which these decisions were taken.”

Also Read: ‘Sri Lankan govt takes our boats, arrests our men’ — why TN fishermen boycotted Katchatheevu fest

Nehru to Indira on Katchatheevu

Cited by BJP leaders to attack the Congress ahead of the general election, the TOI report published Sunday relies on “official documents and records of Parliament” accessed by Tamil Nadu BJP chief Annamalai through an RTI application.

The report cites a noting made by the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru on 10 May, 1961, which it says was part of a note prepared by then commonwealth secretary Y.D. Gundevia, and shared by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) with the informal Consultative Committee of Parliament in 1968.

The noting, as quoted by the national daily, reads: “I attach no importance at all to this little island and I would have no hesitation in giving up our claims to it. I do not like this pending indefinitely and being raised in Parliament.”

It goes on to add that this stance was in stark contrast to the opinion of the then attorney general M.C. Setalvad who in 1960 said India had a stronger claim on Katchatheevu.

The report also says that then MEA joint secretary (law and treaties) K. Krishna Rao in 1960 observed that Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) had a more “substantial” claim to the isle, though India too had “ a good legal case”.

It goes on to add that the Opposition tried to corner the Indira Gandhi-led government over the issue during a discussion in Parliament in 1968 and again in 1969. The Opposition demanded answers from the government for not challenging the claims made by Ceylon over the isle.

The report also says that the decision to relinquish India’s claim to the isle was conveyed to then Tamil Nadu chief minister K. Karunanidhi in June 1974 by foreign secretary Kewal Singh, a year after foreign secretary-level talks in Colombo in 1973.

(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)

Also Read: What’s bottom trawling, the new flashpoint between India-Sri Lanka, and why it’s still rampant in India

 

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