House panel fails to adopt Doklam report

The Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs has not been able to adopt a draft report on Doklam in the past two sittings following objections from BJP MPs, sources have said.

The BJP MPs were not in favour of the contents of the report, which had divergent views from the officials of Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Defence.

While the defence ministry officials claimed credit for resolving the 73-day stand off in Doklam, the MEA officials claimed that it was through diplomatic channels.

Opposition MPs in the panel headed by Congress lawmaker and former Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor claimed that BJP MPs had objections to the contents of the report.

Tharoor, who is out of the country, could not be contacted for his version.

The panel could not finalise the report in its meetings held on August 7 and 9 and table it in the Monsoon session, sources said adding in both the meetings, BJP MPs raises objections.

An Opposition MP claimed that the divergent views of the two ministries were the reason for the BJP MPs' stand.

Indian and Chinese troops were locked in a stand-off in Doklam in Sikkim sector from 16 June 2017 after the Indian side stopped construction of a road in the disputed tri-junction by the Chinese army.

According to the draft report, the panel wanted the country to encourage Bhutan to ensure increase in the deployment of soldiers around Northern Doklam in the Sikkim sector to check activities of Chinese military.

It also suggested that India should remain alert in Doklam though last year's stand off was amicably settled, sources said.

The members of the panel included Congress president Rahul Gandhi. The panel was briefed several times on the situation in Doklam by former foreign secretary S Jaishankar, his successor Vijay Gokhale and defence secretary Sanjay Mitra among others.