'No One Lives There, So What?': PM Modi Slams Digvijaya Singh's Remark On Katchatheevu Island

The verbal sparring between the BJP and the Congress escalated on Wednesday, with Digvijaya Singh dismissing the matter as ‘nonsense’ and questioning ‘if anyone live on that island’. (PTI photo)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday took a swipe at senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh’s remarks on the Katchatheevu island during a poll rally in Rajasthan.

Referring to Singh without directly naming him, PM Modi remarked, “Rahta nahi hai toh de deni hai kya? Phir ye registan ko tum kya kahoge kal. Yahi kahoge ki koi rahta hai kya? (If no one lives there, does that mean you will give it away? Then what will you say about the deserts? That whether anyone stays here?)”

Prime Minister criticised the mindset that considers uninhabited areas as mere land to be disposed of, citing it as a reflection of the Congress’s approach, the Hindustan Times reported.

“This is their mentality. To them, an uninhabited space in the country is just a piece of land. They can give away Rajasthan’s place like that,” PM Modi stated.

The long-standing dispute over territorial and fishing rights concerning the Katchatheevu island has resurfaced, sparking a war of words between the BJP and opposition parties. Situated between Rameswaram in India and Sri Lanka, the island was acknowledged as Sri Lankan territory by the Indian government in 1974 under the “Indo-Sri Lankan Maritime Agreement.”

The issue gained traction ahead of the upcoming general elections after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), backed by RTI documents, claimed that the island was handed over to Sri Lanka during the Congress government’s tenure.

The verbal sparring between the BJP and the Congress escalated on Wednesday, with Digvijaya Singh dismissing the matter as ‘nonsense’ and questioning ‘if anyone live on that island’.

Singh’s response came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s raised the Katchatheevu issue during an election rally in Tamil Nadu, where he accused the Congress and DMK of keeping the state uninformed and accused the Congress for giving away the island to Sri Lanka.

“I want to ask if anybody lives on that island,” Singh said while talking to reporters. On being asked about the issue of the Indian fishermen who got arrested going there, the Congress leader said, “Modiji speaks nonsense, without any head or tail.”