# LAC tension: MEA blames Chinese patrol deviations 2026-10-23T23:01:12+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday, 23 October, said the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) deteriorates when Chinese troops deviate from agreed patrolling protocols. Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal added that both sides continue to use existing diplomatic and military mechanisms to resolve outstanding issues and avoid misunderstanding and miscalculation. The statement came after ITBP Director General Shatrujit Singh Kapoor acknowledged at an event that Indian and Chinese soldiers have had face-offs in Arunachal Pradesh, the first such admission by a DG-level officer. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge demanded a response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, questioning whether patrol rights from before May 2020 have been fully restored and whether concrete results have emerged from talks between PM Modi and President Xi Jinping. Kharge also asked about reported Chinese intrusion near Taksing and continued tension despite the Wachu-Damai dialogue. The MEA referred specific operational queries to the defence ministry. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Aaj Tak and Prabhat Khabar both lead with the MEA's blame on Chinese patrol deviations, but Prabhat Khabar gives nearly equal weight to Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's detailed criticism of the government, including his direct demand for a PM statement in Parliament. Aaj Tak reports Kharge's reaction briefly, framing it as sharp opposition rather than a substantive policy challenge. The uniform core is the MEA's neutral-stance statement about diplomatic channels. The balanced reading: while the government deflects operational details to the defence ministry, the opposition is pressing for a parliamentary accounting, and the specific issues Kharge raised, patrol rights and dialogue outcomes, remain unanswered by the MEA's response. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 1 government-critical, 1 neutral - aajtak.in (neutral report) Leads with MEA's official statement, includes Congress reaction briefly - prabhatkhabar.com (government critical) Gives extensive space to Kharge's demands and criticism This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Tags: Arunachal Pradesh, Line of Actual Control, Mallikarjun Kharge, Ministry of External Affairs, Randhir Jaiswal, Shatrujit Singh Kapoor Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/lac-tension-mea-blames-chinese-patrol-deviations/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/lac-tension-mea-blames-chinese-patrol-deviations/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/