'Indian Army is always ready...': Amit Shah on Xi Jinping's 'prepare for war' ca

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday gave a befitting reply to China President's 'prepare for a war' call to Chinese troops in an exclusive interview with CNN-News18.

The Home Minister said that the Indian Army is always ready to fight any form of agression. He said, “Every nation is always ready (for war). That’s the purpose of maintaining armies – to respond to any form of aggression. I am not saying this in reference to any particular comments, but India’s defence forces are always ready.”

Jinping had earlier instructed Chinese troops to "put their minds and energy on preparing for war". Reportedly, he also told the soldiers to "maintain a state of high alert" and called on them to be "absolutely loyal, absolutely pure, and absolutely reliable". This comes amid tension between the two armies along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Shah said that the armed forces of both the nations are in talks as of now. He, however, made it clear that no one can occupy even an inch of our territory. "We are on guard and no one can snatch even an inch of our territory from us,” Shah said.

Shah also said that "our intentions are noble and they will not bow down to anyone."

The seventh round of military talks between India and China was "positive and constructive", a joint statement by the two armies said on Tuesday, but there was no breakthrough in sight for speedy disengagement of troops at friction points in eastern Ladakh.

As the two sides agreed to earnestly implement the understanding reached by their leaders to not turn differences into disputes, authoritative sources here said there was no significant forward movement on disengagement of troops from the flashpoints in eastern Ladakh. The Indian Army and the Chinese People's Liberation Army(PLA) are locked in an over five-month-long border standoff.