Have Chinese occupied Indian territory in Ladakh, Rahul asks Rajnath

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday asked Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to comment if Chinese troops had occupied Indian territory in Ladakh.

"Once RM is done commenting on the hand symbol, can he answer: Have the Chinese occupied Indian territory in Ladakh?" the Congress leader tweeted, referring to minister's designation in Hindi, Raksha Mantri.

On Monday, Singh took a jibe at Congress after Gandhi raised questions over the issue of a border dispute with China. "Haath me dard ho to dawa kije, haath hi jab dard ho to kya kije," Singh said. The couplet roughly translates to, "You apply medicine to the hand when it pains, but what to do when the hand itself is the cause of pain." Singh made the reference in relation to the Congress' election symbol.

India and China have been locked in a dispute over the heavy military build-up by People's Liberation Army (PLA) where they have brought in more than 5,000 troops along the Eastern Ladakh sector.

The Chinese Army's intent to carry out deeper incursions was checked by the Indian security forces by quick deployment. The Chinese have also brought in heavy vehicles with artillery guns and infantry combat vehicles in their rear positions close to the Indian territory.

A meeting between military commanders of India and China to discuss and resolve the stand-off in Eastern Ladakh also took place on June 6.

Later, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the two countries have agreed to "peacefully" resolve the situation in the border areas by continuing the military and diplomatic engagements.