144 Indian Armed Forces veterans demand probe into Galwan Valley encounter killing 20 soldiers
As many as 144 veterans of the Indian Armed Forces have issued a joint statement on the situation at the border with China in Ladakh, drawing attention to failure in the "political, civil and military establishments" that led to the continued swirl of rumors on the issue and the killing of 20 soldiers in fist fighting at strategic Galwan Valley.
The signatories include three Lt. Generals, 13 Major Generals, 19 brigadiers, one Admiral, two Vice Admirals, one Rear Admiral and one Air Vice Marshal.
"The incident at Galwan could only have happened because of failure at one or more levels in the political, civil and military establishments, especially in continuous intelligence acquisition and dissemination," they wrote.
The statement is addressed to the president, the prime minister, defense minister, chief of the defense staff and the chief of the army, air and naval staff.
The statement further read that a fact-finding body needs to be immediately instituted regarding the "intrusions, incursions and encroachments by China" in Aksai Chin (Depsang, Galwan, Pangong Tso etc.), and elsewhere along India's long border with it. "We request that the report of this fact-finding body be tabled in the Lok Sabha with time-bound framework," it said.
The Veterans also strongly urged that the un-redacted Henderson Brooks-Bhagat Report concerning the 1962 war against China be released into the public domain, so that the military-bureaucratic-political system and the public can learn from the mistakes of the past. There can be no sensible reason for this Report remaining secret even after 57 years, they added.
The veterans went on to say that India urgently needs a national policy and strategy on neighborhood management, featuring all of India's immediate and more distant neighbors, especially China and Pakistan. "Formulation of such national policy and strategy has been neglected by successive governments," they said.
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