In an escalation of the Katchatheevu row, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi has stirred controversy by sharing a 2015 RTI response. The document indicates that the Katchatheevu island was neither acquired nor ceded, affirming its location within Sri Lankan territory according to the India-Sri Lanka International Maritime Boundary Line.
In a post on 'X', Chaturvedi said that the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) should be able to address the "discrepancies" in its RTI response in 2015 and its position in 2024. This did not involve either acquiring or ceding of territory belonging to India since the area in question had never been demarcated. Under the Agreements, the Island of Katchatheevu lies on the Sri Lankan side of the India-Sri Lanka International Maritime Boundary Line.
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Chaturvedi asserted that the RTI response was provided during the tenure of S Jaishankar, who now serves as the External Affairs Minister. Hinting at conflicting perspectives, she said, Today the Foreign Minister and yesterday the PM claimed it has been ceded So is the change in stance for their election politics or has Modiji made a case for Sri Lanka?
Earlier today, Jaishankar had rebuked the Congress party's longstanding stance on the Katchatheevu island issue, highlighting Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru's characterization of it as a nuisance. This is an observation by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru in May of 1961. He says, he writes, I attach no importance at all to this little island and I would have no hesitation in giving up our claim to it. I do not like matters like this pending.