Skirmish at Ladakh broke out over removal of Chinese tent: Report

The skirmish between Indian and Chinese troops at the Galwan Valley in Ladakh on Monday (June 15) that led to the death of 20 Indian and 45 Chinese soldiers, erupted over the removal of a Chinese tent in the valley, reports said.

According to NDTV, the faceoff erupted when a small Indian patrol party tried removing a Chinese tent in the Galwan Valley even though China during Lieutenant General-level talks on June 6 had agreed to remove it.

The report said a physical altercation broke out between the two sides on Monday after Chinese soldiers targeted Indian Colonel BL Santosh. He is one of the 20 soldiers who were killed in the face-off.

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Both sides used arm-to-arm combat as well as batons and rods with nails in the fight.

Reinforcements were called by both sides multiple times and the fight lasted for more than six hours.

Many of the soldiers fell into the Galwan river during the fight.

The Indian Army on Tuesday had said that apart from an officer and two jawans, 17 others who were critically injured and exposed to sub-zero temperatures succumbed.

Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava in a statement on Tuesday had called the clash an attempt by the Chinese “to alter the status quo in violation of de-escalation terms agreed to in recent talks”

According to latest reports, four other Indian soldiers are in a critical condition following Monday’s face-off.

Related news: China suffered 35 casualties during Galwan clash: US intel

While Indian soldiers have been instructed not to open fire, sources told NDTV that the protocols may change to equip soldiers with more stringent rules to engage with Chinese troops.