Prasad was addressing a press conference in Delhi on Wednesday.

 

On being asked about the face-off at the Line of Actual Control, he gave a one-liner reply: "No one can dare to stare at Modi's India."

 

Prasad refused to elaborate on the Sino-India face-off and centred his attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

 

Prasad's reply on the border tension came at a time when Chinese President Xi Jinping had on Tuesday ordered his military to scale up the battle preparedness, considering the worst-case scenarios and asked them to resolutely defend the country's sovereignty.

 

Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday demanded from the government a statement on the stand-off at the border in Ladakh and Sikkim and relations with Nepal.

 

The political slugfest between the BJP and the Congress was triggered by the continuing face-off between India and China in eastern Ladakh after a clash between soldiers from both sides on two occasions. According to reports, Indian and Chinese Army personnel clashed along the northern bank of the Pangong Lake in Ladakh on May 5. Four days later, a face-off between the two sides was witnessed near Naku La Pass in Sikkim.

 

This is the first major stand-off between India and China after the Doklam episode in 2017 when Indian and Chinese forces saw a major face-off over construction of a road by China.