New Delhi, June 20: The father of a soldier who was injured during a face-off with Chinese forces in Ladakh's Galwan Valley has asked Congress lawmaker Rahul Gandhi not to indulge in politics over the issue. In a video, the father, identified as Balwant Singh, can be heard asking Rahul Gandhi not to play politics. The Congress leader had shared a video of Balwant Singh wherein he was heard saying that Indian soldiers had "nothing" when Chinese forces attacked them in the Galwan Valley. Chinese Attack in Galwan Valley Pre-Planned, Govt Was Fast Asleep, Says Rahul Gandhi.

"The Indian Army is a strong army and can defeat China and any other country. Rahul Gandhi, don’t indulge in politics in this...my son fought in the army and will continue fighting in the army. Once he recovers, he will again go to fight," Singh can be heard saying in the video. In an earlier video, Singh that his wounded son had informed him that "Indian soldiers had nothing" during the face-off with Chinese forces in Ladakh. India-China Standoff: Won't Let Sacrifice at Galwan Valley Go in Vain, Says IAF Chief RKS Bhadauria.

"We were 300-400 and they were 2000-2500 in numbers. They suddenly attacked and surrounded us. They had rods and sticks. They pelted stone. We had nothing. We had to escape," Singh quoted his son as saying in the earlier video. Rahul Gandhi on Friday had shared the video to counter Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar for referring to the protocol on the question of the Indian soldiers being "unarmed" during the face-off with the Chinese.

Sharing the video, Rahul Gandhi tweeted: "It’s sad to see senior GOI ministers reduced to lying in order to protect the PM. Don’t insult our martyrs with your lies." The war of words started on Thursday when Rahul Gandhi tweeted a video of a national newspaper, asking why Indian soldiers were "unarmed" during the face-off with the Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh on Monday night. "How dare China kill our UNARMED soldiers? Why were our soldiers sent UNARMED to martyrdom?" Gandhi had commented, evoking massive response on Twitter.

In an unusual reaction, Jaishankar, who generally stays away from political squabbles on social media, rebutted Rahul Gandhi on Twitter over the issue. "Let us get the facts straight," Jaishankar tweeted, saying, "All troops on border duty always carry arms, especially when leaving post." "Those at Galwan on 15 June did so. Long-standing practice (as per 1996 & 2005 agreements) not to use firearms during faceoffs," he wrote.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 20, 2020 10:54 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).