Panaji: China's attack on Indian soldiers was a pre-planned strategy, but India will not allow the Chinese armed forces to crossover even an inch over the Line of Actual Control (LAC), Union Minister of State for Defence Shripad Naik has said. Naik was speaking to the media in Panaji at the state BJP office following the violent standoff at Galwan Valley in Ladakh in which 20 Indian soldiers were brutally killed.
“Today, China’s aggression on India is without reason. The attack on six-seven posts is pre-planned on part of China and we are confident that India will give a befitting reply to this,” Naik told reporters. “I offer my condolences to the colonel and other soldiers who were martyred. The whole country is proud of their sacrifice for the motherland. Their sacrifice will not be wasted,” the MoS Defence also said.
The North Goa MP also said there has been an ongoing discussion on an official level for several days about the tension prevalent on the India-China border. “Things had settled along five to six places (along the border). In some places, soldiers on both sides had withdrawn by 2.5 kms. But what happened in Leh recently was a very unfortunate occurrence, after China crossed the border. The matter started from there,” Naik said. “The hand-to-hand fight and the stone-pelting which occurred, in which our colonel, other soldiers died and Chinese soldiers were killed as well, was a big incident... We are firm in our effort and position that we will not allow China or anyone to cross even one inch over the LAC and our border,” Naik said.
Indian National Congress leader Rahul Gandhi | ANI
Ministers lying to protect PM; govt was fast asleep: Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused senior ministers in the government of “lying” to protect the PM and the Centre was “fast asleep” while martyred jawans paid the price in Ladakh. “It’s sad to see senior GOI ministers reduced to lying in order to protect the PM. Don’t insult our martyrs with your lies,” he tweeted using the hashtag ‘BJPBetraysOurJawans’.
Gandhi also tagged a one-minute video of a jawan’s father saying the Indian soldiers were unarmed when they were attacked by Chinese troops. The Congress leader’s attack on the Union ministers comes after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar rebutted him saying all Indian troops guarding the border with China carry arms. Jaishankar was replying to Gandhi’s poser on why Army personnel in Galwan Valley were sent “unarmed to martyrdom”.
“It’s now crystal clear that: The Chinese attack in Galwan was pre-planned. GOI was fast asleep and denied the problem. The price was paid by our martyred Jawans,”
Gandhi earlier said on Twitter. He had also tagged a report quoting MoS for Defence Shripad Naik saying the attack was pre-planned by China and the Indian forces would give a befitting reply. —Our Bureau
