Ladakh face-off: CSK suspends team doctor for 'distasteful' post towards martyred Indian soldiers

Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Wednesday suspended its team doctor Madhu Thottappillil for a social media post.

On Tuesday, Thottappillil had posted a tweet on the death of 20 Indian Army personnel who lost their lives during a clash with Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh.

"Just curious if the Coffins will come back with a “PM CARES” sticker on them?" his tweet read, which was later deleted.

This post attracted a lot of attention and was immediately deemed to be in "bad taste" by the IPL franchise.

Later, CSK took to Twitter and claimed that they were not aware of the post by Madhu Thottappillil but now he has been suspended from his post as the Team Doctor.

"The Chennai Super Kings Management was not aware of the personal tweet of Dr. Madhu Thottappillil. He has been suspended from his position as the Team Doctor," CSK wrote on Twitter.

"Chennai Super Kings regrets his tweet which was without the knowledge of the Management and in bad taste."

The Chennai Super Kings Management was not aware of the personal tweet of Dr. Madhu Thottappillil. He has been suspended from his position as the Team Doctor.

Chennai Super Kings regrets his tweet which was without the knowledge of the Management and in bad taste.

— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) June 17, 2020

The Indian Army on Tuesday said the violent border clash with Chinese troops in eastern Ladakh's Galwan Valley on Monday has claimed the lives of 20 Indian jawans, most of whom were "exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain" and later succumbed to their injuries. 

Initially, the army had said one officer and two soldiers were killed in the incident, further escalating the already volatile border standoff between the two sides. 

In a statement Tuesday night, the army said that 17 more soldiers who "were were critically injured in the line of duty at the stand off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain have succumbed to their injuries, taking the total that were killed in action to 20."

It is the first incident involving the casualty of an Indian soldier in a violent clash with the Chinese Army after 1975 when four Indian soldiers were killed in an ambush at Tulung La in Arunachal Pradesh.

Indian intercepts reveal that the Chinese side suffered 43 casualties including dead and seriously injured, ANI reported citing sources.