Pakistan resorts to shelling, firing along LoC; 21 injured

Pakistan troops on Monday resorted to shelling and firing on Indian posts in four sectors along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu, Rajouri and Poonch districts of Jammu and Kashmir, in which two persons including a jawan were injured.

“There have been unprovoked ceasefire violations by Pakistani Army in Sunderbani and Naushera sectors of Rajouri district and Pallanwala sector of Jammu district,” a defence spokesman said.

Pakistani troops used 82mm mortar bombs and automatic weapons on Indian positions from 1440 hours in these sectors, he said. A 67-year-old resident, Mangat Ram, was injured in Pakistani shelling in Khour area in Pallanwala sector, Jammu Deputy Commissioner Simrandeep Singh said.

Pakistani troops also resorted firing along LoC in Khadi area of Poonch district, according to reports. One jawan was injured in the firing in Poonch. The defence spokesman said the Indian troops gave “befitting reply” to Pakistani firing. The violations of the ceasefire came after a lull of a few days on the border. On November 12, an army jawan was killed in Pakistani firing in Keran sector of north Kashmir’s Kupwara district.

On November 10, another jawan, Satnam Singh, was killed in snipper shots from across the LoC in Machail sector of North Kashmir. On November 8, two army jawans were killed in firing and shelling along LoC in Naushera sector of Rajouri district. On November 6, two army jawans were killed and five others - two soldiers, a BSF officer and two women - were injured as Pakistani army opened fire in an attempt to facilitate two infiltration bids along the LoC in Krishna Ghati and Poonch sectors of Poonch district.

The worst-ever Pakistani shelling targeting civil population took place on November 1 when eight persons, including two children and four women, were killed and 22 others injured along the IB and the LoC in five sectors of J&K, forcing Indian troops to give befitting reply by destroying 14 Pakistani posts and killing two of their troopers. The 2003 India-Pakistan ceasefire agreement has virtually become redundant with a whopping 286 incidents of firing and shelling along LoC and IB in Jammu and Kashmir by Pakistani troops that resulted in death of 26 people, including 14 security personnel, since the surgical strike on terrorist launch pads in PoK.

There have been 186 ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops along the over 190km International Border (IB) in Jammu frontier, while 104 violations of the agreement took place along the over 500km Line of Control (LoC).

Meanwhile, Pakistan on Monday said seven of its soldiers were killed in “unprovoked” firing by Indian troops across the LoC, prompting it to summon the Indian envoy here to warn that India’s “belligerent” attitude may lead to a “strategic miscalculation”.

Seven Pakistani soldiers were killed at the LoC in the Bhimber sector in an alleged ceasefire violation by Indian troops late Sunday night, according to a statement by the army. Pakistani troops responded to “unprovoked” Indian firing and targeted Indian posts “effectively”, it said.

Foreign Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry summoned Indian High Commissioner Gautam Bambawale on Monday afternoon and condemned the “unprovoked ceasefire” violation by the Indian forces on the Line of Control (LoC). The Foreign Secretary deplored the increasing Indian ceasefire violations at the LoC and the Working Boundary, especially in the last two months, a statement said.

He emphasised that this “belligerent attitude” of Indian forces was a “serious threat to the regional peace and security and may lead to a strategic miscalculation”, the statement added.