Fact check: Were 100 Chinese soldiers killed in the Galwan Valley clash

New Delhi, July 06: Certain websites have claimed that more than 100 Chinese soldiers had been killed in the Galwan Valley clash.

The figure has been attributed to Jianli Yang, a Chinese dissident and son of a former Communist Party leader. It may be recalled that 20 Indian soldiers were martyred and 35 Chinese soldiers were either killed or injured in the violent brawl that took place at the Galwan Valley on June 15.

In an opinion piece in The Washington Post, Yang had written that Beijing fears admitting that it had lost troops, that too more in number than its opponent. They fear admitting it as it could lead to major unrest that could even put the regime of the Chinese Communist Party at stake, he had also written.

With regard to the casualties on the Chinese side, there has not been any official claim as yet. Leave alone the casualties, China has even refused to acknowledge the clash that took place. The People's Daily and PLA Daily had not even reported the clash that took place at Galwan Valley.

Top officials in New Delhi contacted by OneIndia said that their assessment is that 35 Chinese soldiers were either killed or injured in the clash. The Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian did not acknowledge the casualties on their end.

While it is certain that the Chinese too suffered casualties, there is nothing official about the number. China would never acknowledge this fact and there is also no credible information to suggest that 100 soldiers on the Chinese side had died in the Galwan Valley clash.