PM: No Indian posts taken over, Army given free hand
■ Sonia poses tough questions to govt on Ladakh
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Friday that no one had entered Indian territory nor were Indian posts taken over, as he briefed top political leaders on the six-week border standoff with China and the killing of 20 soldiers in the Galwan Valley.
He said at the all-party meeting held via video conferencing that the soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice taught a “lesson” to those who dared to look towards India and that the Army has been given “freedom” to take the necessary steps. He also said India had also “conveyed its position clearly to China through diplomatic means”.
The four-hour meeting was attended by top Opposition leaders like Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, Mamata Banerjee and Sitaram Yechury, among others.
Mrs Gandhi asked some tough questions to the government, like whether there was any intelligence failure on the situation along the LAC, and sought an assurance from Mr Modi that status quo In the meeting Gandhi asked some tough questions to the government like whether there was any intelligence failure on the situation along the
LAC, and sought an assurance from Modi that status quo would be restored at the border. She said that “even at this late stage we are in the dark about many crucial aspects”, and asked the government to clarify when Chinese troops had intruded into Indian territory.
Mr Pawar, a former defence minister, said diplomatic channels should be used to defuse the tension, adding Chinese troops must be “evacuated” from the high ground in the
Galwan Valley. Most leaders, including TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray, expressed solidarity with the Centre. The all-party meeting, Ms Banerjee said, was a good message for the nation and showed that “we are united behind our jawans”.
Mr Pawar stressed that issues like whether soldiers carried arms or not are decided by international agreements.
“We need to respect such sensitive matters,” Mr Pawar said.