Congress flip-flop on Chinese envoy meeting Rahul

New Delhi: China's move to make public its envoy to India Luo Zhaohui's meeting with Rahul Gandhi sent the Congress in a tizzy with its leaders initially denying that such an interaction ever took place.

After an embarrassing flip-flop, which saw Congress accuse a 'bhakt' channel of spreading “fake news”, the party's chief spokesman Randeep Singh Surjewala admitted that the meeting did take place.

Ambassador Luo met Rahul on Saturday, against the backdrop the ongoing standoff between Chinese and Indian troops in the Sikkim sector.

According to a one-line statement posted on the Chinese embassy website, Ambassador Luo met Rahul and “exchanged views on the current bilateral relations”.

Initially, Congress denied that such a meeting ever took place. Surjewala took to Twitter to accuse “a wanting to be 'bhakt' channel” for running “fake news”.

“A wanting to be 'Bhakt' channel will not question 3 Union Ministers visiting China or PM's bonhomie & praise at G20 yet run fake news!” Surjewala said.

The Chinese embassy removed its statement about Lou's meeting with Rahul after Congress issued a denial.

Taking a cue from Surjewala, Congress' social media chief and actor-turned-politician Ramya Divya Spandana added to the confusion by saying that “even if Congress VP had met the Chinese Ambassador I don't see it as an issue.”

Congress later admitted that the Lou indeed had a meeting with Rahul.

“Various ambassadors and envoys keep meeting Congress President and Vice President time to time on courtesy basis. Not only Chinese envoy but also Bhutanese envoy and former National Security Adviser Shiv Shankar Menon met Rahulji,” Surjewala said seeking to cap an avoidable controversy.

However, she added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi not raising the Chinese incursions during his meeting with President Xi Jinping was “an issue”.

The Chinese ambassador's meeting with Rahul took place a day after the Congress vice president had questioned Modi's silence on the Chinese incursions. “Why is our Prime Minister silent on China,” Rahul had asked on Twitter hours before Modi greeted Xi warmly on the sidelines of the G20 meeting in Hamburg.