Jairam Ramesh questions contradictory remarks about Pakistan-China cooperation during Operation Sindoor

Congress in-charge of communication, Jairam Ramesh. File | Photo credit: Shiv Kumar Pushpakar

Seeking a comprehensive official review of Operation Sindoor, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Thursday (27 Aug 2026) questioned what he described as conflicting statements by senior military officials on the extent of cooperation between Pakistan and China during the operation.

India launched an operation against terrorist camps in Pakistan in May 2025 in response to the Pahalgam attack.

In a post on X, Mr Ramesh shared two video clips and compared the remarks of Deputy Chief of Staff Lt Gen Rahul Singh dated 4 July 2025 and former Chief of Staff General Anil Chauhan dated 25 August 2026.

“The nation is confused”

Mr. Ramesh said Lt. Gen. Singh revealed the very disturbingly deep nature of the Pakistan-China jugalbandi (close ties) during Operation Sindoor.

However, he said that General Chauhan’s more recent remarks on the same issue were simply the opposite of what the army officer had stated. “The nation is confused,” Mr. Ramesh said, asking, “What is going on here?”

He questioned whether there was a deeper plan to change the narrative around Operation Sindoor, linking the issue to what he said was the Modi government’s broader approach to China.

“What is going on here? Is there some deeper plan to change the narrative? Is this part of a calibrated capitulation to China by the Modi government that has been in clear evidence for a long time since the Prime Minister’s infamous clean letter to China in June 2020 and the record trade deficits with China that his government presided over?” he wrote on X. “The nation needs to know,” he said.

The remarks come at a time of renewed political scrutiny of Operation Sindoor following General Chauhan’s recent comments on the military operation and the nature of Pakistan-China cooperation at the time.

Mr Ramesh called for a comprehensive official review of Operation Sindoor, similar to the Kargil Review Committee set up after the 1999 Kargil War, arguing that differing accounts from senior officials required a structured review of the operation and its lessons.

Published – 28 Aug 2026 01:12 IST