New Delhi : After Islamabad’s unilateral decision to freeze the India-Pakistan dialogue last week, its troops have now violated the ceasefire on the Line of Control and resorted to mortar shelling and firing in the Poonch sector.
“The Pakistan army resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violation along the Line of Control in the Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir,” said defence spokesman Lt Col Manish Mehta. “Our troops responded appropriately and no casualties or damage was reported on our side,” he added.
Meanwhile, two Pakistanis were shot dead by a Border Security Force night patrolling team after the troops detected some suspicious movement along the fencing at the border outpost in Bherowal. DIG BSF Sumer Singh said that the BSF men opened fire when the intruders ignored their warning to surrender and kept moving towards them. One intruder died in the Indian territory and the other suffered bullet wounds but managed to return to the Pakistani side, where he died just a few yards away from the International Border, he informed.
On the other hand, in Islamabad, the Pakistan army accused India of resorting to firing across the LoC in the Neza Pir sector and said that “heavy unprovoked firing and shelling” went on for hours. It said that the Pakistan Army troops provided a “befitting response” to the firing and no loss of life or property has been reported so far.
Significantly, it has been after nearly six months
that LoC in Poonch has become alive. Nearly a dozen people had been killed and three dozen others injured between July-September last year in unprovoked firing. Then the Director Generals of BSF and Chenab Rangers had a meeting in New Delhi on September 12 and agreed to enforce the ceasefire.
Condolences from across border, too
NEW DELHI: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Sunday night called up Prime Minister Narendra Modi to offer condolences over the Kerala fire tragedy. In a reciprocal gesture, Modi offered his condolences to Sharif over the loss of lives and property due to the earthquake in Pakistan. “The people and the government of Pakistan express their deep condolences on the loss of precious lives, resulting from a fire in the temple,” Pakistan’s Foreign Office also said. “Our sympathies are with the bereaved families. We wish early recovery to all injured people,” it added.
