NEW DELHI: The news of killing of the Indian soldiers had begun doing rounds on Monday evening but the Chinese government mouthpiece Global Times reported first about it on Tuesday much before the Indian official communication came from the Army.
The Chinese then went ballistic, accusing India of crossing the border and warning it against “unilateral action” while the Indian political and military leadership chose to react quite late in the day. Senior military officials feel China has once again been ahead in information warfare.
Former Army Chief General VP Malik said, “A clear message should have come from the political and diplomatic leadership. Soldiers are there to maintain the LAC. I was waiting till afternoon and had already known the Chinese version. It was late afternoon that the Army issued a statement.”
The Global Times tweeted the link of the story titled ‘China slams India over provocative border attacks amidst talks’ around 12:15 pm. The Army came out with its version well after that saying, “During the de-escalation process underway in the Galwan Valley, a violent faceoff took place with casualties on both sides.”
A sermonising tweet was released by the Global Times, attributing the quote to the PLA Western Theatre Command spokesperson. Going a step further, China also lodged a protest with India and sternly demanded that the country “abide by the relevant agreements and restrain their frontline troops”. India, with its muted approach, allowed China to dominate the narrative, feel soldiers.
“The Chinese are the aggressors. Then why are we allowing them to go away with the script? In the perception battle, we are too slow. A dedicated group of people should be nominated to bring out a timely coherent message,” sa