Published 17:47 IST, June 17th 2020
Rahul Gandhi hits out at Centre alleging 'insult to Army' as Cong assures govt support
Lashing out at the Centre, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday, asked Defence Minister Rajnath Singh why he condoled the deaths of the Galwan martyrs after two days.
Lashing out at the Centre, former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday, asked Defence Minister Rajnath Singh why he condoled the deaths of the Galwan martyrs after two days. He also questioned the timing of BJP's 'Jan Samwad' virtual rallies amid the ongoing India-China standoff since May. He also alleged that media was blaming the Indian Army for China's incursion.
Rahul Gandhi lashes out at Centre
Congress assures backing Centre
On the other hand, Congress interim-chief Sonia Gandhi in a video conference earlier in the day, called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come forth and tell citizens the 'truth' about the situation at the Indo-China border. The Congress President in a video message raised several questions about the situation at the border and extended Congress' full support to the Indian Army, its soldiers and families and the Indian Government as well. In response, PM Modi has already called an all-party meeting on June 19 at 5 PM to discuss the situation at India-China border areas.
PM Modi: 'India won't stay quiet'
Before addressing 15 state Chief Ministers on current COVID-19 crisis, PM Narendra Modi, gave a stern warning to China, saying that while India wished to maintain peace, it will not stay quiet if provoked. He added that the nation must be proud to know that its 20 Army martyrs who died in Galwan Valley, died fighting till the end. Currently, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi have had a conversation where India has stated that the attack was 'pre-meditated by China' and asked to adhere to the agreement reached upon on June 6, but have agreed to de-escalate the issue through talks.
What happened in Galwan?
20 Indian Army soldiers including a Commanding Officer were martyred when a violent faceoff took place on Monday night when the de-escalation process was underway in the Galwan Valley. As per US intelligence reports, the Chinese side has suffered 35 casualties including a Commanding officer, during the physical clash. Sources revealed that an Indian colonel was attacked by Chinese Army personnel with iron rods without any provocation leading to a strong retaliation from the Indian side. This physical hand-to-hand combat went on for many hours on Monday, sources revealed. On Tuesday morning, senior commanders took stock of the situation and the talks started at about 7 am.
Updated 17:47 IST, June 17th 2020