| Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day's biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. We hope you are staying home and staying safe. Here are the big stories that you need to follow today: Ladakh face-off: PM says India can give befitting reply A day after reports emerged of a violent standoff between India and China in East Ladakh that left 20 Indian soldiers dead, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said the sacrifice made by the soldiers would not go in vain. India was a peace-loving country but "let no one doubt that India will defend its sovereignty and integrity with all its might," he asserted. This was part of the PM's opening remarks during the second part of his videoconference with Chief Ministers and Lieutenant Governors of Union Territories (UTs) on handling the Covid-19 pandemic. "I pay homage to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives for the country and convey my condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones. I want to tell the country that the sacrifice of the soldiers will not go in vain. India wants peace but if antagonised it can and will give a befitting reply whatever the situation is," he said. 'China took pre-meditated and planned action' Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar spoke to his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi over phone today. Jaishankar reportedly conveyed to the Chinese minister that "pre-meditated and planned action" by Chinese soldiers was directly responsible for Monday's clash. "It [China's actions] reflected an intent to change the facts on the ground in violation of all our agreements to not change the status quo," the minister said, according to a statement by the foreign ministry. It added that the foreign minister conveyed the government's protest against the clashes in the strongest terms. "He recalled that at the meeting of senior military commanders held on June 6, an agreement was reached on de-escalation and disengagement along the Line of Actual Control," the statement said. "Ground commanders were meeting regularly to implement this consensus throughout the last week. While there was some progress, the Chinese side sought to erect a structure in Galwan valley on our side of the LAC. When this became a source of dispute, the Chinese side took pre-meditated and planned action that was directly responsible for the resulting violence and casualties." According to the statement, Jaishankar said that the unprecedented development "will have a serious impact on the bilateral relationship". Both ministers, however, signed off on a note of de-escalating tensions, saying, "Neither side would take any action to escalate matters and instead, ensure peace and tranquillity as per bilateral agreements and protocols." Government cites U.S. intelligence on casualties A word now on the casualties from that violent clash. While we know the official number from India, the picture is less clear on the Chinese side. Sources in the government are claiming that, as per U.S. intelligence reports, the Chinese Army suffered 35 casualties during the violent clash with the Indian military in eastern Ladakh's Galwan Valley.  An Army convoy moves along the Srinagar-Leh National highway in Ganderbal district of central Kashmir on June 17, 2020. The figure could include the number of lives lost as well as the seriously wounded, they added. China has not yet spoken about the casualties suffered by the People's Liberation Army during the clash. Rahul, Sonia ask for more clarity Congress president Sonia Gandhi asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to reassure the nation with "truth and facts" about what happened on the Ladakh border and spell out the government's thinking to resolve the dispute. Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, said the country needs more clarity on what has happened. "Why is the PM silent? Why is he hiding? Enough is enough. We need to know what has happened. How dare China kill our soldiers? How dare they take our land?" he tweeted. In a separate video message, Gandhi said, "Come forward Pradhan Mantri ji, the entire nation, all of us, stand with you. The entire nation is with you. Come forward and tell the truth to the nation. Don't be scared". Supreme Court questions interest on loan during moratorium The Supreme Court Wednesday said there is "no merit in charging interest on interest" on the deferred EMIs that would otherwise have been due during the loan repayment moratorium period announced in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. A bench headed by Justice Ashok Bhushan observed that once a moratorium is fixed, then it should serve the desired purposes and the government should consider interfering in the matter as it cannot leave everything to banks. "Once the moratorium is fixed, then it should serve the desired purposes and we see no merit in charging interest on interest," the Bench, also comprising Justices S K Kaul and Justice M R Shah, orally observed.  In a bid to provide respite to borrowers during the Covid-10 lockdown, the RBI had announced a three-month moratorium on loan repayments till May 2020, which has now been extended till August 2020. However, while the borrowers have the option of not paying the EMI during this period, interest on the principal would continue to be charged for these months. The petitioner, in his plea, had argued that the accrual of interest, to be paid in bulk or on a monthly basis after the lifting of the embargo, was akin to taking away with one hand what was given by the other hand. The Supreme Court has now sought a response from the RBI and the Centre on the question raised by the plea. Don't deny quarantine to doctors: Supreme Court The Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to issue directions to states mandating payment of salaries and provision of quarantine facilities to doctors and healthcare workers engaged in treating Covid-19 patients. The court was hearing a plea filed by a private doctor questioning the Centre's May 15 decision that 14-day quarantine was not mandatory for doctors. A bench of justices Ashok Bhushan, S.K. Kaul and M.R. Shah said that doctors and healthcare workers treating Covid-19 patients should not be denied quarantine facilities. Asking the Centre to file a compliance report within four weeks on payment of salaries and provision of quarantine facilities, the top court warned that non-compliance would be viewed seriously. Covid Watch: Numbers and developments  A street vendor selling facemasks hung up on his bicycle waits for customers in New Delhi on June 17, 2020. The number of coronavirus cases in the country stood at 3,63,984 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 12,186. With over 2,000 infections reported today, Tamil Nadu has crossed the 50,000 mark in reported coronavirus cases. In Brief: The U.K. government on Wednesday authorised the State-funded National Health Service (NHS) to use the steroid dexamethasone after results of an Oxford University trial confirmed that it reduced the risk of death in severely ill patients. The Department of Health said the cheap and widely available anti-inflammatory steroid has been immediately approved to treat all hospitalised Covid-19 patients requiring oxygen, including those on ventilators. Airports in Beijing cancelled more than 1,200 flights amid fears over a new wave of coronavirus infections. Beijing recorded 31 new cases on Wednesday. The new cases have sparked concern because China had managed to largely control the outbreak. The CBI has carried out searches in connection with a case against two Mumbai-based companies and others, who allegedly cheated Bank of India of over ₹57 crore. "Searches have been conducted at five places in Mumbai, on the residential and official premises of the accused," said a CBI official. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. | 
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