‘Does Anybody Live On That Island?’ Digivijaya Singh Hits Back On Modi’s Katchatheevu Onslaught

Congress leader Digvijaya Singh hit back on PM Modi's statement regarding Katchatheevu asking "Does anybody live on that island?"

Congress leader Digvijaya Singh

Source : PTI

The Katchatheevu Island row, which began after Prime Minister Narendra Modi criticised Congress last month for "callously" giving away the Katchatheevu island to Sri Lanka has now turned into a political issue ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. With the ruling and opposition leaders hitting out at each other amid the ongoing row, Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, when asked to comment on PM Modi's statement regarding the island asked "Does anybody live on that island?" 

#WATCH | Bhopal: On Prime Minister Modi's statement regarding Kachchatheevu island, Congress leader Digvijaya Singh says, "Does anybody live on that island? I want to ask..." pic.twitter.com/5XnwSNg2hC

— ANI (@ANI) April 10, 2024

The controversy over the island began on March 31 when PM Modi shared on X stating: "Eye-opening and startling! New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away Katchatheevu." Through this post, the prime minister criticised the grand old party for ceding the Katchatheevu island to Sri Lanka in 1974 and also shared a link to an article published by the Times of India titled 'RTI reply shows how Indira Gandhi ceded the island to Sri Lanka.'

Eye opening and startling!

New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away #Katchatheevu.

This has angered every Indian and reaffirmed in people’s minds- we can’t ever trust Congress!

Weakening India’s unity, integrity and interests has been Congress’ way of working for…

— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) March 31, 2024

The article was based on documents that were obtained by the chief of the BJP in Tamil Nadu, K Annamalai which he had obtained by filing an RTI.

The documents quoted that Nehru attached "no importance at all to Katchatheevu" and "would have no hesitation in giving up claims to it".

The report claimed that Jawaharlal Nehru dismissed the issue as insignificant and stated that the Indira Gandhi government later handed over control of the island to Sri Lanka in 1974. The official documents obtained by K Annamalai show how India lost control of the island in the Palk Strait. 

The report also stated that India had a "global legal case" to assert its claim over the island since it was ruled by an Indian king between 1875 and 1948.

PM Modi's remarks have drawn sharp reactions from Congress. The grand old party has accused the PM of raking up the issue just as the Lok Sabha elections are around the corner.

The political parties in Tamil Nadu have also raised this issue regularly. Many BJP leaders have also joined the row and criticised the Congress. They have also hit out at the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) - which currently governs Tamil Nadu and was also in power in 1974, for not doing enough to retain Katchatheevu. 

On the contrary, Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin claimed that the Prime Minister "blatantly lied" at a rally in Kanyakumari about Tamil Nadu fishermen facing trouble from Sri Lanka because of the DMK's "sin" in the past.

Katchatheevu is a strip of land spanning 1.9 square kilometers of land and is located in the Palk Strait, which is a stretch of ocean dividing India and Sri Lanka. It is located 20 kilometers away from the Indian shore, northeast of Rameshwaram town in Tamil Nadu, and southwest of Jaffna in Sri Lanka.