Even as America is waking up to Pakistan's double game, as President Obama's stern letter to Asif Ali Zardari quoted in The Washington Post shows, China is showing the same kind of irrational anti-Indian attitude for which Pakistan was known. It is not surprising, therefore, that Manmohan Singh was more forthright in outlining India's position vis-à-vis China to the Americans than in reiterating the old complaints about Pakistan not doing enough to contain terrorism.

It is India's misfortune that its two northern neighbours harbour such ill-feelings towards it. Given their common antipathy towards this country, it may not be a coincidence that even as Pakistan's efforts to bleed India with a thousand cuts are failing, China has stepped up its aggressive postures to keep the pressure on India.

Having realised that Pakistan can no longer be used to needle India, China seems to have decided to do the job itself from now on. The reason for doing so is probably the realisation in Beijing that Pakistan's transformation into a failed state cannot but accelerate the process of India's development as a major political and economic power in Asia.

Such a turn of events has ominous portents for China not only because it will have to tolerate a formidable rival in its neighbourhood, but also because the rival is likely to outshine it in several crucial areas. As Manmohan Singh pointed out, China may have a higher GDP, but that is not the only important factor in estimating a country. Instead, it is India's multicultural democracy and human rights record which also have to be taken into account.

Since India is a beacon of light in this regard not only to Asia but the whole world, China cannot but feel envious, especially because it knows that Beijing may be feared for its military might but not respected and admired. The only way, therefore, in which China can make its presence felt is by humiliating India.

Hence the reassertion of its claims on Arunachal Pradesh or southern Tibet, as Beijing likes to call it, and attempts so delineate Kashmir as yet another disputed province by stapling the visas for Kashmiris to their Indian passports. The refusal to permit the construction of a road under the NREGS in Ladakh may also be intended to show this northern region, too, as disputed.

The reference in a Chinese publication to the 1962 border conflict is a hint that Beijing may have such a brief war in mind as a message to the world that it remains No.1 in Asia for all the admiration which India may be evoking for achieving what was once considered virtually impossible - making economic progress while sustaining a rumbustious democracy.

However, the emasculation of Pakistan, its all-weather friend, is not the only reason for China to try and attain the jehadi objective of bleeding India with a thousand cuts. As the reports of thousands of incidents of social unrest in China shows, its authoritarian façade hides considerable discontent below the seemingly placid surface. Besides, the all-too-frequent mine disasters show that China is emulating the 19th century capitalist model of production where little attention is paid to safety standards.

Even if the absence of trade unions in China ensures that there cannot be any organised protests against such criminal lapses, the presence of television cameras and of even a restricted Internet ensures that the news of such disasters cannot be kept a secret.

There are other reasons, too, why China may be itching for a repetition of 1962 in order to divert attention of its own people from local problems. One of them is that it must be clear to Beijing that Tibet will remain a thorn in its flesh. In fact, the wound may fester even more if a more militant generation of Tibetans comes to the fore when the Dalai Lama is no longer around.

Obama may have shied away from meeting the Tibetan pontiff before his visit to China, but he had no option but to tell his hosts publicly that they must talk to the Tibetan spiritual leader. This demand for a negotiated settlement will only grow if there are further signs of unrest in Tibet. It is the same with Xinjiang where the execution of the ring leaders will not solve the problem of alienation.

The Middle Kingdom, therefore, is not in the pink of health despite its glittering urban landscape. It may have made spectacular economic progress (even if some of its figures are believed to have been stir-fried), but by avoiding the Soviet example of glasnost, it has retained the oppressive political structure. Lest the bottling up of a myriad grievances should lead to an explosion, it may be seeking to heighten the tension with India.

But the remedy it is seeking may prove to be worse than the disease because India is no longer the pushover it was in 1962. (IPA Service)