Our govt completely miscalculated: Rahul Gandhi on India-China border row

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has slammed the Centre's view on security when it comes to Chinese aggression along the borders, saying the Modi government's "miscalculation on the global view of security" has given "a clear message" to China to do anything they want as "India will not respond".

"Security today in the 21st century is not good enough to say what our borders look like. Security today has become holistic. It is important to have a global view of security and this is where our government has completely miscalculated," said Rahul Gandhi during a conversation with Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) leader Kamal Haasan where the two discussed a range of issues from politics to Chinese aggression to cinema, to Gandhiji among others.

"We constantly hear what is going on at the border. China has taken 2,000 sqm, but our Prime Minister Modi has not said anything, military said that they are sitting in the territory. This sends a very clear message to China and the message is we can do anything we want and India will not respond," said Rahul Gandhi.

To which, Kamal Haasan responded with a dramatic line: "To them (China), it is we are whistling in the dark to ale fear."

Drawing parallels between Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the conflict between India and China, the Wayanad MP said: "Essentially, what the Russians have done in Ukraine is that they have said we do not want Ukraine to have a strong relationship with the west, and they have basically told the Ukrainians that if you will have a strong relationship with the west, we will alter your geography. That is the exact same principle that can be applied to India."

"What the Chinese are saying to us is that be careful with what you are doing, because we will alter your geography. We will enter Ladakh, we will enter Arunachal (Pradesh), and what I can see is them building a platform for that type of approach," he explained.

Rahul said that taking care of unity within the country is directly related to the Chinese advances: "The single most important thing in the 21st century is that a country has internal cohesion. That there's harmony in the country, that people are not fighting, there's peace in the country, and the country has a vision. The point is not going to war, the point is being in a position where you cannot be attacked.

"There is a link between a weak economy, a confused nation without vision, hatred and anger, and the Chinese sitting in our territory. Because they know that we are dealing with internal confusions and lack of harmony, so they can just go in and do whatever they want," he added.

Speaking at length about how the Indian economy can flourish and go past China, Rahul Gandhi said that he did not believe the West could "take over" China in terms of production, "but India can".

"On production, on economy level, I don't believe that the West can take over China. I believe India can do it. We have the population, the young population, a large population, a large educated base and if you see the West they have too much they live in opulence.

"As an Indian person, I see a huge opportunity for India to become a producer for the world like China," said Gandhi.

He said India has skills in every sphere and it is only a matter of tapping into them.

Kamal Haasan said his reason for celebrating the foot march is the fact that Rahul Gandhi reached out to people in person instead of standing on a podium and lecturing.

"The reason why I wanted to celebrate your walk is because you reached out to people and lend your ear, instead of standing on a podium and lecturing," said Haasan.

The "Hey Ram" actor also spoke about his unique relationship with Mahatma Gandhi.

"My father was a 'Congress man', but my environment made me a bitter critic of Gandhiji when I was in my teens. Around 24-25, I discovered Gandhiji on my own, and over the years, exponentially, I became a fan," Kamal Haasan said, adding that he made the movie "say sorry" to Gandhiji.

"Hey Ram" is a story of a parallel assassin who wanted to kill Mahatma Gandhi but changed his mind when he got closer to him, to correct himself. "The worst form of criticism is an assassination, I think it's very cheap," he said.

Speaking about communal harmony in the country, Haasan argued that peace prevails until someone deliberately disturbs it. "If you got to places like Kerala, amity prevails, until you doctor it. I think there are more sides to it than just Hindu and Muslim, we have to understand that this country will only flourish with its plurality," the actor said.