Military Pressure on India hasn’t Worked After 1962: Lt Gen DS Hooda

Amid an unprecedented spurt in Chinese transgressions at various places in Ladakh along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), former Northern Army Commander Lt Gen DS Hooda (retd) says India will stand its ground. “Where has military pressure on India worked after 1962? Our ability to monitor transgressions is a lot better now. The Chinese have a lot of pressure points along the LAC. Those can be exploited, if it comes to that,” he told StratNews Global Editor-in-Chief Nitin A. Gokhale. China expert Jayadeva Ranade, who joined in the conversation, is of the opinion the current bout of muscle-flexing by the Chinese could be a bit of overconfidence at a time China and Xi Jinping in particular are under a lot of pressure due to a host of reasons—global pushback due to Covid-19, protests in Hong Kong, a poor domestic economy that could worsen as global chains move out and a perception that the Community Party’s grip is loosening.