New Delhi, Jun 11 (IANS): After Congress leader Rahul Gandhi claimed the Chinese have taken possession of Indian territory in the Ladakh region, as many as 71 Armed forces veterans have issued a strong statement against the former Congress president, questioning his "motivation" for making the controversial statement.

"At the outset, we wish to condemn such undesirable and deplorable tweets/comments by a person who has no idea as to how our soldiers work in the world's most difficult and unfriendly terrain," read the statement. It added, "Rahul Gandhi should never forget 1962, when the country was headed by none other than his great grandfather Shri Jawaharlal Nehru and we were not only caught totally unprepared but had to suffer very humiliating defeat at the hands of China, despite the fact that our soldiers fought valiantly and caused huge casualties to China."

Resurrecting his controversial meeting with Chinese officials during the Doklam face-off, the veterans made a stinging attack on Gandhi.

"Whatever may be the motivation of making such statements, it is apparent to everyone that the same are devoid of correct facts and are against national security, which is our main concern. Everyone knows that Shri Gandhi was hobnobbing with Chinese diplomats when there was a standoff between India and China in 2017 in Doklam. No sane Indian is expected to make statements against his own country and military, which undoubtedly support the enemy countries," the statement said.

The veterans included AVM Sanjib Bordoloi, Air Cmde S.S. Saxena, Brig. Dinkar Adeeb among others, goes on to state that the Congressman's statements on Pakistan have been verbatim used and supported by the Pakistani government and military in the past and thus stands a risk in this case as well. "Such twisting of issues of military importance for petty political gains are highly deplorable," they said.

Earlier, Rahul Gandhi tweeted: "The Chinese have walked in and taken our territory in Ladakh. Meanwhile, the PM is absolutely silent and has vanished from the scene."

Calling it "petty politicisation", the veterans said, "We, the veterans, who are party to this statement have been in the field and have participated in several operations/ actions and, therefore, we all feel insulted and humiliated by such low level politics resorted to by Shri Rahul Gandhi."

The Indian and Chinese Army have been in a standoff in the eastern Ladakh area, where the People's Liberation Army (PLA) has created a major military buildup along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).