They got a bloody nose in Kargil: Rao Inderjit on Musharraf

Responding to former Pakistani military ruler Pervez Musharraf's comment that his armed forces had "grabbed India by the throat" during the Kargil War, Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh on Tuesday said "they (Pakistan) got a bloody nose" for their 1999 misadventure.

Stressing that Musharraf has no position in the present set-up in Pakistan, Rao Inderjit said the Pakistani was a "maverick politician or a maverick leader".

"There is no need for us to respond to what he says. I think they got a bloody nose in Kargil," the minister said on the sidelines of a programme here.

Recalling the Kargil War between India and Pakistan, Musharraf on Sunday said New Delhi would never be able to forget the three-month-long battle when his armed forces "grabbed India by the throat".

"There was a second line force, too, which caught India by the throat and that was later given the status of an army," Musharraf said while addressing a function of his All Pakistan Muslim League (APML) political party.

"We entered Kargil from four points of which India was not aware," he said, adding that New Delhi will also remember the battle of Kargil.

On Narendra Modi's recent visit to China, Rao Inderjit said the prime minister "achieved very well" on the diplomatic front in China.

"The prime minister has gone to strive for economic bond... with China. He has achieved very well. I think if we have economic bond with each other, some kind of misadventure on the border by either side will be uncalled for, it will be detrimental for (economic growth)," he said.

Rao Inderjit said India and China have to live together in peace if both nations want to prosper. But at the same time, India cannot let down its defence.