China’s PLA Fired Shots To Intimidate Indian Soldiers, Says Army

08 Sep 2020

India has said that Chinese troops on Monday fired shots to intimidate Indian soldiers while attempting to close in on a forward position held by the army along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) on the southern bank of Pangong Tso in eastern Ladakh where the border row has worsened.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, the Indian Army said its troops exercised “great restraint and behaved in a mature and responsible manner” despite the grave provocation. The Indian Army said its troops did not cross the LAC or open fire at any stage, denying accusations made by the PLA.

“It is the People’s Liberation Army that has been blatantly violating agreements and carrying out aggressive manoeuvres, while engagement at military, diplomatic and political level is in progress,” the statement said.

The development comes three days after defence minister Rajnath Singh asked China to strictly respect the LAC, not make attempts to unilaterally change the status quo, and work with India for complete disengagement from all friction areas in eastern Ladakh in the midst of military tensions between the two sides.

“In the instant case on September 7, it was the PLA troops who were attempting to close-in with one of our forward positions along the LAC and when dissuaded by own troops, PLA troops fired a few rounds in the air in an attempt to intimidate own troops,” the army statement said.

Courtesy: Opera News/HT