A delegation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) met senior leaders of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in New Delhi on Tuesday, a day after holding discussions with senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) officials at the party headquarters.
BJP leaders described the meetings as efforts to enhance dialogue, while the Congress questioned the timing and intent, noting that China laid claim to the Shaksgam Valley in Jammu and Kashmir shortly after the closed-door discussion at the BJP headquarters.
According to an RSS official, the delegation, led by Sun Haiyan, vice-minister of the International Department of the CPC, and including Chinese Ambassador to India Xu Feihong, had requested the meeting.
“The Sangh is open to meeting people from all ideologies and faiths. The CPC wanted to learn more about the Sangh and met Dattatreya Hosabale, the general secretary. It was a courtesy call,” the official said, declining to comment on the details of the discussion.
This was not the first visit by a Chinese delegation. After the BJP came to power in 2014, Chinese Embassy representatives had also held courtesy visits with Sangh leaders. BJP officials reiterated that the current meeting was a “courtesy call” and did not provide further details.
“Diplomatic engagement has increased since Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping at the BRICS summit in Kazan last year. This meeting aimed to further strengthen communication and dialogue,” a BJP functionary said.
Arun Singh, BJP national general secretary, said on X that the discussions focused on enhancing communication and interaction between the BJP and the CPC.
Congress, however, criticized the meeting. Party leader Pawan Khera said, “There’s no issue with dialogue itself. The problem is with the BJP’s hypocrisy, duplicity, and deceit.”
He highlighted that the BJP had previously accused Congress of undermining national security by engaging with the CPC and claimed that the current meeting sends mixed signals amid reports of Chinese construction activity in disputed areas.
Khera also raised concerns about India’s national security, pointing to the Galwan Valley clash in 2020 and alleging that China has continued to expand its military presence along the Line of Actual Control.
On economic matters, he questioned the government’s handling of Chinese trade and investment, noting that while the BJP had urged citizens to avoid Chinese products, it had simultaneously allowed Chinese companies to operate in sensitive sectors.
Khera also criticized the meeting between the CPC delegation and RSS general secretary Dattatreya Hosabale, stating, “Non-state actors should not influence state policy. The RSS operates behind the scenes.”
