PM Modi met father of PVC awardee late Captain Vikram Batra

Prime Minister Narendra Modi met GL Batra, father of Captain Vikram Batra, who was posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest gallantry award for Kargil War, at the Kargil Vijay Diwas event here on Saturday.

Prime Minister Modi recalled Batra's sacrifice during his speech.

"When Param Vir Chakra awardee, son of Himachal Pradesh, J & K Rifles Captain Vikram Batra had said, 'yeh dil maange more, his heart wasn't asking for himself, not for a religion, a language or a caste but for the whole Bharat, for Maa Bharati," said Prime Minister Narendra Modi while addressing a Kargil Vijay Diwas event here.

At the event at the IGI Stadium, Lieutenant Hitesh son of Lance Naik Bachan Singh who lost his life in Kargil War and his mother, Kamesh Bala, also came on the stage to loud applause by the gathering. Lt Hitesh joined the same battalion his father had served at the time of war.

His mother looked emotional as the people lauded the sacrifice of her husband.

Prime Minister said that Vajpayee government gave "an effective strategic answer" to Pakistan's "deceit" on Kashmir in 1999 Kargil war and noted that people defeated in wars were resorting to proxy war for their political objectives and were giving encouragement to terrorism.

He said Pakistan has been resorting to deceit on Kashmir since Independence and it had done so when wars were fought in 1948, 1965 and 1971.

"Its deceit was defeated in 1999 (Kargil war). The neighbour thought that India will lodge protest over Kargil (intrusion) and tension will scare the world with countries jumping in for mediation and create a new boundary. They had not hoped we will give an effective answer. Instead of crying and finding excuses, giving a strong strategic answer proved costly for the enemy," he said.