BJP MP and advocate Mahesh Jethmalani on Wednesday continued laying into senior Congress leader Jairam over his alleged links to China and sabotaging vital projects when he served as the Environment Minister in the UPA government.
“As EM #JairamRamesh sabotaged India’s vital Hydel projects. He halted the Narmada dam construction in Gujarat&MP. Significantly, in a note to the then PM he put a question mark on all NE hydel projects(see link)All this while China was making giant strides in HEP,” Jethmalani tweeted along with sharing a Financial Express article published in 2010.
As EM #JairamRamesh sabotaged India’s vital Hydel projects.He halted Narmada dam construction in Gujarat&MP.Significantly,in a note to the then PM he put a question mark on all NE hydel projects(see link)All this while China was making giant strides in HEP https://t.co/Z5MTHL3DQS
— Mahesh Jethmalani (@JethmalaniM) January 25, 2023
The article titled ‘In a note to PM, Jairam takes on govt, puts a question mark on N-E projects’ talked about how the-then Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh demanded a review of all hydel projects in the North East and a moratorium on any further clearances for hydel projects in Arunachal Pradesh.
In his letter to former PM Manmohan Singh, Ramesh raised alarm over “making Arunachal Pradesh a pawn” in the race between India and China, the report stated.
The report also cited Ramesh as warning the Centre about the possible resentment among the Assamese society against mainland India for “exploiting North East hydel resources for its benefits”.
As per the report, Ramesh had also conveyed his concerns to the PM over mega projects in Bhutan like the Kurichu dam and Mangdechhu hydel project, which he claimed would bound to have diplomatic ramifications as those projects were being built with Indian help, and power produced from them would be purchased by India.
Ramesh chiefly cited concerns over projects mostly being built on Brahmaputra, which even China was eyeing to harness on its side, the report shared by Mahesh Jethmalani said.
Significantly, even as Ramesh was seeking a review of all hydel projects in the North East, he advocated drawing on Chinese expertise in implementing hydel projects in Arunachal Pradesh at a time when China was laying claim on the Indian state, Jethmalani said in a subsequent tweet.
While Jairam wanted the PM to review all hydel projects in the NE on grounds raised by some NGOs he advocated drawing on Chinese expertise in implementing India’s hydel projects in Arunachal Pradesh at a time when China was claiming AP as its territory!https://t.co/fbEZSLsxBT
— Mahesh Jethmalani (@JethmalaniM) January 25, 2023
The Supreme Court advocate shared a Times of India report published in 2010 when Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh spoke about the possibility of seeking Chinese expertise to build hydrological projects in Arunachal Pradesh because “it did not have the kind of experience that China had”.
“But our ability to handle vast hydel projects is much less compared to China,” Ramesh said while hinting at the possibility of seeking Chinese help in building hydel project in Arunachal Pradesh.
Mahesh Jethmalani asks Jairam Ramesh to come clean on his links to China
This is not the first time that Jethmalani had cornered Ramesh on his allegedly close links with China and his softer approach towards tackling the threat posed by Beijing.
Earlier yesterday, advocate Mahesh Jethmalani asked Congress leader Jairam Ramesh to come clean on his links to the Chinese company Huawei. Notably, Huawei has been banned by several countries, including the United States, for security reasons.
In a tweet, Jethmalani said, “Since 2005, Jairam Ramesh has been lobbying for Chinese telecom co Huawei’s activities in India (see below excerpts from his book). Huawei has been banned in several countries as a security threat. Jairam now questions GOIs China stand. It behoves him to disclose his Huawei links.”
Earlier, Jethmalani had called Ramesh a “mouthpiece of Chinese disinformation” in a tweet. On December 30, he wrote, “Jairam Ramesh’s denigration of India’s pharma industry is natural. An ardent Sinophile, he is a mouthpiece of Chinese disinformation. His rant comes against the backdrop of China’s present grim crisis & India’s success. His lies stand exposed by the Gambian& Uzbekistan govts.”
