Army retaliates ceasefire violation that killed civilian

The government said Indian army was dominating the Line of Control as guns went blazing in the Naushera and Krishna Ghati sectors on the de facto border with Pakistan army starting indiscriminate firing.

Army sources said that Pakistani troops used small arms, automatics, 82mm and 120 mm mortars. A General Engineering Reserve Force (GREF) labourer was killed while two others including a BSF jawan were injured in mortar shelling and firing on forward posts along the LoC in Rajouri and Poonch.

The army retaliated heavily and some reports suggested that five Pakistani soldiers were killed in India’s massive response. Army Chief General Bipin Rawat arrived in Srinagar on Thursday to review the security situation and operational preparedness of the forces posted in Kashmir and along the LoC. Defence minister Arun Jaitley said later in the day that India is dominating the LoC irrespective of whether the troubles are being created by foreign insurgents or domestic terrorists. But Pakistan foreign office claimed that a civilian was killed in the Indian attack. Pakistan foreign office summoned deputy Indian high commissioner JP Singh to protest against the alleged ceasefire violation. Islamabad claimed that Indian army opened fire in Battal, Jandrot and Kotli sectors, where four civilians including three women were injured.

India, however, blamed Pakistan for the situation on the border claiming that all the efforts by New Delhi to resume dialogue were thwarted by Islamabad.

Jaitley said that an enviorment of peace should prevail for the resumption of bilateral dialogue and added that India had taken several initiatives to restore ties, but every time Pakistan responded with terror attacks. Be it the strike on the Pathankot air base or the Uri army camp or beheading the bodies of Indian soldiers, Pakistan responded with violence. “The government of India has taken significant steps to ease the situation in the past. The fact that our Prime Minister dropped in at Lahore at a social function in Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s family, were all steps intended to ease the tension,” he said.

Commenting on the situation in J&K, Jaitley said only some regions were affected by terrorism, the rest of the state was peaceful. He pointed out that a two-day meeting of the GST council was held in Srinagar recently.

Addressing a BSF investiture ceremony in New Delhi, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said infiltration had come down to a large extent since India conducted surgical strikes on the terror hubs across the LoC.