Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally broke his silence about the violent face-off that happened in the eastern Ladakh region resulting in the loss of 20 Indian soldiers.
The Prime Minister assured that the sacrifice of the Indian soldiers would not go in vain but at the same time, he called for peace. He said,
“India wants peace but when provoked, India is capable of giving a fitting reply, be it any kind of situation. The country will be proud that our soldiers died fighting the Chinese. I would like to assure the nation that the sacrifice of our jawans will not be in vain. For us, the unity and sovereignty of the country are most important.”
The Prime Minister has also called for an all-party meeting on Friday to discuss the situation along the line of actual control after the clashes of both the forces in Eastern Ladakh. The meeting will be attended by the presidents of various political parties and is scheduled at 5 pm on Friday through a video conference.
Deadliest Escalation Since 1975
In what is being called the deadliest escalation with the Chinese forces in 45 years, a violent face-off between the Indian and the Chinese forces has resulted in 20 casualties on the Indian side and an estimated 43 on the Chinese side.
Among the 20 Indian Amry personnel who lost their lives on Monday was the Commanding officer of an infantry battalion of the Indian Army. Although the two troops engaged in tension along the border for a few weeks now, the incident on Monday night comes as an unprecedented development.
Initially, it was reported that 2 Indian soldiers and one officer had lost their lives in the face-off at the Galwan valley but later the Indian Army put out a statement saying that there are at least 20 casualties on the Indian side. India has blamed China’s People Liberation Army for the incident that happened. India alleged that the PLA didn’t respect the line of actual control.
Hours after the Chinese spokesperson said that India should not cross the border, the Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement that said that the escalation happened because the PLA made an attempt to unilaterally change the status quo in the Galwan Valley. The spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs said that the casualties on both sides could have been avoided had the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed by the Chinese.
Source: NDTV
