Jammu: Several parts of Jammu witnessed anti-China protests on Thursday, days after 20 Indian soldiers lost their lives in a clash with the Chinese army in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley.
Calls to boycott China-made goods also grew louder in the region as some locals smashed Chinese-made goods in the streets.
The Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) were at the forefront of the protests.
Led by former minister and J&K BJP chief Sat Sharma, several women workers of the saffron party held a function to pay homage to the Indian troops and raised slogans praising their valour.
The group also held a protest against China. Sharma gave a call to boycott Chinese products and support the government.
“We call upon all the people to boycott Chinese products. We want to hit them economically,” Sharma told reporters.
Amid sloganeering of ‘Bharat Mata ki jai’ and ‘Veer jawan amar rahe’, Congress workers led by vice president of the party’s state unit and former minister Ramban Bhalla paid homage to the killed soldiers.
The Congress workers too organised an anti-China protest at the party headquarters here.
“The government of India should give China a befitting reply. Entire country is behind the security forces and government,” chief spokesperson of J&K Congress Ravinder Sharma told reporters.
In Kashmir too, the BJP workers organised a function to pay tributes to the soldiers and demanded that the government give a befitting reply to China.
“Protests by BJP workers were held in Kashmir. They demanded complete boycott of Chinese products. They also called for a befitting reply to be given to China for such a cowardly act,” BJP Kashmir spokesperson Rajiv Pandita said.
The Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), the students’ wing of the RSS, held a protest in Kathua town and burnt the effigy of Chinese President Xi Jinping as well as the country’s flag.
They raised anti-China slogans and demanded a “Pakistan type surgical strike” against China to avenge the death of the 20 soldiers.
The protesters blocked roads for several hours leading to traffic snarls.
“We want a befitting reply should be given to China from India. We should also boycott their products. It is time to take revenge,” an ABVP protester said. In Vijaypur and Ghagwal areas of Samba district, the Congress and BJP workers held anti-Pakistan protests in markets and on highways and burnt effigies of the Chinese president.
In Udhampur and Reasi districts, the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) held anti-China protests.
Activists of a Dogra front broke several Chinese-made products and held demonstrations against the country while giving a call to boycott Chinese products. Meanwhile, the Sant Samaj too demanded that the killings of the soldiers be avenged as they asked people to boycott Chinese products.
Similar protests were also held in townships in Jagti, Chenani, Kishtwar, Bhaderwah, Poonch and Rajouri towns of Jammu region.
