NEW DELHI, July 28: The Home Ministry has recommended prosecution of three Chinese nationals who had infiltrated into the Ladakh sector of Jammu and Kashmir in June as the statements given by them to interrogators were contradictory.
All of them had an advance knowledge of Indian defence posts and routes taken by troops during patrolling in the higher reaches of Ladakh, official sources said.
The decision taken by the Home Ministry has been conveyed to authorities concerned in Ladakh for bringing down the three — Salamo, Abdul Khaliq and Adil Thorsong — to Leh from Margo post in north Ladakh where they have been kept since June 12 after being detained near Sultanchku, the sources said.
The statements of all the three, who have been kept separately since their detention, were completely contradictory and the interrogators believe that the three were lying about the route taken by them to enter India, they said.
Various security agencies, which questioned them, expressed surprise that the three had the knowledge of the Indian posts and routes taken by the patrols to higher reaches along the Sino-Indian border but feigned ignorance about any of the Chinese camps across the Line of Actual Control (LAC), they said.
The trio, who speak only Yarkandi and Uyghur languages, could not give any basic details about Kargalilik of Xianjang province from where they claimed to belong, according to the sources.
The small political maps seized from the three were torn from local school books, the sources said, adding that apprehension was being expressed that they could have been headed towards Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) which is barely 20 kms up north of the area where they were nabbed.
The area where the trio were detained was in news as Indian and Chinese troops had a face-off for nearly 21 days from April 15, this year.
Their claim that they have entered India because of the charm of Bollywood superstars Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan was being seen as “diversionary” tactics. The three, one of whom is one-eyed, had also told their interrogators earlier that they wanted to enter India to earn money as they were facing acute poverty in their region.
According to sources, the Chinese nationals will be handed over to the Jammu and Kashmir Police which will prosecute as per the law.
They had been detained with improvised swords and knives, tinned food including egg powder (useful in higher region), Chinese currency of over 900 Yuan and Chinese leather jackets. The three claimed that the jackets, discarded by the Chinese troops, were picked en-route.
As per the laid down procedure along the LAC, the custody of any accused apprehended in the area has to be with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police and interrogation can be carried out by central security agencies. (PTI)
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