The scuffle between Indian and Chinese troops near Pangong Lake in Ladakh on August 15 has been captured in a video. The purported video, shared by a retired military officer on social media on Saturday, shows Indian and Chinese soldiers shoving, kicking and hurling stones at each other.
The 44-second-long clip, which was posted by retired Lt General Prakash Katoch on his Facebook page on Saturday afternoon, was shared by the National Defence on YouTube. Indian Army officials, however, said they “have no confirmation of the authenticity of the video”, according to The Indian Express.
On August 15, soldiers of the People’s Liberation Army had tried to enter the Indian side from two points – Finger Four and Finger Five – between 6 am and 9 am, India had said. Indian soldiers were believed to have formed a human chain to stop the Chinese troops from advancing. The PLA personnel then began to hurl stones at the Indian guards, who retaliated. Personnel from both sides had sustained some injuries.
On August 16, Beijing’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson had said she did not have any information about an alleged Chinese incursion in Ladakh. A day after the incident, officials reportedly held a flag meeting in Chusul sector of Leh to defuse the tension between the two nations.
But, the Ministry of External Affairs on Friday had admitted that the incident took place. Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar had said that it was later discussed by the local army commanders of both the sides. “Such incidents are not in the interest of either side,” Kumar had said. “We should maintain peace and tranquility.” He added that the incident must not be linked with any other matter, in an apparent reference to the Sikkim standoff.
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