The Congress leadership has condemned the killing of four civilians during Indian forces’ firing on protesters in Leh on September 24, demanding an impartial judicial inquiry into the incident and called out Prime Minister Narendra Modi for betraying the people of Ladakh. Among those killed was Kargil war veteran Tsewang Tharchin. Both Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi highlighted the anguish surrounding his death in their social media posts.  

Kharge shared a video of Tharchin’s grieving father on social media, stating, “Tsewang Tharchin served India in the Kargil War… What did he get in return? A bullet from the Modi government in Ladakh! Both father and son served the army.” Criticizing Modi for giving China a “clean chit” after the Galwan clash, Kharge said, “When 20 soldiers died at the LAC in Galwan area of Ladakh, Modi gave China a ‘clean chit.’ How can such a government respect the sacrifice of brave soldiers like Tsewang Tharchin? This is BJP’s hollow nationalism.”

Rahul Gandhi echoed the sentiment, posting the same video and lamenting, “Father in the army, son in the army — patriotism runs in their blood. Yet this brave son was shot simply for standing up for Ladakh’s rights. Modi ji, you have betrayed the people of Ladakh. They are demanding their rights. Stop the politics of violence and fear.” 

“We demand that an impartial judicial inquiry be conducted into these killings in Ladakh, and the culprits be given the harshest punishment,” he added. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh expressed outrage over Tharchin’s killing, emphasizing that he was peacefully protesting for Ladakh’s Sixth Schedule status. “It is a matter of deepest anguish that he and three others were killed in the firing,” Ramesh said.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)