Friday, March 29, 2024

Madhav’s presence at funeral of Tibetan soldier shows India means business

In what could be taken as a direct message of the Indian government to China, Bharatiya Janata Party’s general secretary and top leader, Ram Madhav attended the funeral of Special Frontier Force (SFF) Company leader and Tibetan soldier Nyima Tenzin in Leh.

The Tibetan soldier was killed in an accidental mine blast during patrolling in the Ladakh area last week.

Madhav laid a wreath for the deceased soldier and paid tributes while meeting his family. The BJP leader was quick in sharing the images of the funeral from his official Twitter handle. However, the tweet was deleted later on.

The screenshots of his tweet, widely shared, read: “Attended the funeral of SFF Coy Ldr Nyima Tenzin, a Tibetan who laid down his life protecting our borders in Ladakh and laid a wreath as a tribute. Let (the) sacrfices of such valiant soldiers bring peace along the Indo-Tibetan border….”

Amidst the fresh tensions going on between India and China, Madhav’s presence at the funeral can be seen as a strong message to China. Experts view Madhav’s message significant as he mentioned “India-Tibet border” and not “India-China border.” Even though he has deleted the tweet, it conveys a signal to China that India perceives Tibet a disputed territory.

Indian and Tibetan flags were waved side-by-side. The funeral was attended by a little-known group of elites and high-altitude warriors.  The funeral cortege was accompanied by scores of cars and motorcycles. People waved Indian and Tibetan flags. Banners at the site described Tenzin as a soldier who “sacrificed his life to protect his second homeland India fighting common enemy China.”

Tenzin’s coffin was carried in an army truck. It was draped in the Indian tricolour and Tibetan flag which were handed over to his widow at the funeral. Experts reckoned this was the first time an SFF personnel who died in action was given a public funeral, complete with military honours and a volley of shots fired by a ceremonial guard.

The message won’t be lost on China which is very sensitive on rest of the world raking up the Tibetan issue. SFF was raised with former Tibetan guerrillas in 1962 and took part in action during the 1971 war with Pakistan and in the 1999 Kargil conflict. It is led by army officers and most of its personnel are men of Tibetan origin.

BJP MP from Ladakh, Jamyang Tsering Namgyal was with Madhav during the funeral. Madhav had earlier addressed the first executive meeting of the newly formed unit of the BJP in the Union Territory of Ladakh.

India and China are engaged in a standoff along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh since April-May. The situation, despite multiple talks, hasn’t been resolved yet.

 

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