'Salute to our real heroes' - Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma react after Indian soldiers lose their lives in border clash with China

At least 20 Indian soldiers attained martyrdom on Monday after a violent face-off with Chinese troops along the LAC in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley. The Indian officials revealed that none of the sides fired any shots during the clash. However, the results were grave as both the nuclear-armed countries suffered casualties.

The Indian Army initially said in a statement that three Indian soldiers had died, but later updated the number to 20. The statement revealed that 17 soldiers got critically injured in the line of duty at the stand-off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain. The clash was the first deadly stand-off between both nations since 1975.

The news of Indian soldiers attaining martyrdom in the stand-off spread like wildfire on social media. The tension between both the countries aggravated after many Indians started lashing out at China. Many well-known personalities including cricketers rued the incident and paid tribute to the soldiers who lost their lives.

No one is more selfless and brave than a soldier: Virat Kohli

Current India skipper Virat Kohli, through his Twitter, also condoled the death of soldiers who sacrificed their lives while protecting the country. Kohli even said that no individual is more selfless and brave than a soldier.

“Salute and deepest respect to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect our country in the Galwan Valley. NO one is more selfless and brave than a soldier. Sincere condolences to the families. I hope they find peace through our prayers at this difficult time,” tweeted the 31-year-old.

Salute and deepest respect to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect our country in the Galwan Valley. NO one is more selfless and brave than a soldier. Sincere condolences to the families. I hope they find peace through our prayers at this difficult time. 🙏

— Virat Kohli (@imVkohli) June 17, 2020

Along with Kohli, his limited-overs deputy Rohit Sharma also paid tribute to the soldiers and wished strength to their families. “Salute to our REAL HEROES who laid their lives protecting and honouring our border. May god give their families utmost strength,” tweeted Rohit.

Salute to our REAL HEROES who laid their lives protecting and honouring our border. May god give their families utmost strength #GalwanValley

— Rohit Sharma (@ImRo45) June 17, 2020

Along with Rohit and Kohli, many Indian cricketers have saluted the sacrifice of Indian soldiers. Shikhar Dhawan and Virender Sehwag also lauded the bravery of soldiers and expressed grief over their death. Harbhajan Singh even lashed out at China and appealed to every Indian to boycott Chinese products.

This has not been the first instance of a rift in relations of both the countries. A few months back, the intrusion of Chinese soldiers into the Indian territory had also hogged the headlines. The long-standing border stand-off has been the primary reason behind a drift in the relationship between both nations.