New Delhi: No one entered Indian territory, nor were Indian posts taken over, Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted in an all-party meeting convened on Friday to discuss the Ladakh clash in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed.
In his closing remarks at an all-party meeting on the face-off between Indian and Chinese troops along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Galwan Valley, Ladakh, Modi said the whole country is hurt and angry at what the Chinese have done.
"At the outset, prime minister clarified that neither is anyone inside our territory nor is any of our post captured," the government said in a statement, adding he assured the leaders that the armed forces are leaving no stone unturned to protect the country.
"India wants peace and friendship, but its sovereignty is supreme," he said.
"20 jawans did die, but they taught a lesson to those who had their eyes on India," Modi said.
"Our forces will do whatever it takes to protect the country, whether it is in terms of deployment, action or counter-action. Today, we have the capability that no one can think of eyeing even an inch of our territory," he said.
"While we have given a free hand to our armed forces, diplomatically too we have made our stand clear to China," he added.
"Our patrolling capacity has increased due to newly built infrastructure, especially along LAC," he said.
The nearly four-hour meeting through video conference was attended by top opposition leaders including Sonia Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, Mamata Banerjee and Sitaram Yechury among others.
The government said the leaders of the political parties hailed the bravery displayed by the armed forces in Ladakh and reposed faith in the leadership of the prime minister in this hour of need. They expressed commitment to stand united with the government.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that the nation will never forget the sacrifice of the martyrs while External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar gave an overview of agreements between India and China on border management, besides sharing details of recent developments.
The clash in Galwan Valley was the worst cross border confrontation between the two sides in 45 years. While India lost 20 soldiers, China's People's Liberation Army has not yet talked about the number of casualties it suffered.
The Chinese soldiers used stones, nail-studded sticks, iron rods and clubs in carrying out brutal attacks on Indian soldiers after they protested the erection of a surveillance post by China on the Indian side of the LAC in Galwan.
The prime minister's comment that Indian soldiers taught a "lesson" to those who dared to look towards India is seen as reference to casualties on the Chinese side.
The two armies were engaged in a standoff in Galwan and several other areas of eastern Ladakh since May 5 when the two sides clashed on the banks of the Pangong Tso.
The situation in the area deteriorated after around 250 Chinese and Indian soldiers were engaged in a violent face-off on May 5 and 6. The incident in Pangong Tso was followed by a similar incident in north Sikkim on May 9.
The India-China border dispute covers the 3,488-km-long LAC. China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet, while India contests it.
Prior to the clashes, both sides have been asserting that pending the final resolution of the boundary issue, it is necessary to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.
(With inputs from PTI)
