India's PM Accused of Being Soft on China

By opposition ahead of upcoming elections

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is facing attacks from the opposition for being too soft in trade and border disputes with China ahead of a visit to the world's second-biggest economy that comes months before a general election.

Narendra Modi, the prime ministerial candidate for the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, told an audience four days ago that Mr Singh's weakness had encouraged China's army to encroach on Indian territory. "We remained weak when we needed to be strong," Mr Modi said, referring to tensions along the 3,500-kilometre border shared by the world's two most populous countries, which account for a third of humanity.

Mr Modi's criticism signals a tougher line in relations with China that could stoke tensions if he manages to unseat Mr Singh's government in elections due by May. A military standoff in April marked the most serious incident between the nuclear-armed neighbours in a quarter of a century on the Himalayan border where India and China fought a brief war in 1962.