Shelling exposes Pakistan’s frustration after failure to get response on Kashmir: Omar
JAMMU: In one of the worst ceasefire violations by Pakistan, five villagers were killed and 29 injured on Monday in heavy mortar shelling and firing from across the international border and Line of Control in Jammu and Poonch sectors. Pakistani troops indulged in heavy and unprovoked firing and shelling of mortars on 10 border outposts (BoPs) and civilian areas along international border (IB) in Arnia belt of Jammu district from 10 PM spilling over to this morning, a BSF spokesman said.
BSF troops retaliated effectively and gave a befitting reply, he said, adding that the intermittent firing exchanges were on in the area when reports last came in. In the shelling, five villagers were killed and 29 injured in several hamlets, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO), R S Pura Tehsil, Devender Singh told PTI.
The Pakistani troops also resorted to mortar shelling and firing on forward posts along LoC in Bhimber Gali belt of Poonch district since 0830 hours today, a Defence Spokesman said. After the fresh escalation, India asserted that Pakistan must put an immediate end to ceasefire violations.
“Pakistan should stop ceasefire violations now and understand the reality that times have changed in India,” Home Minister Rajnath Singh said. The Pakistani troops used small, automatic weapons and mortar bombs to target the border hamlets and BoPs. 25 of the injured have been shifted to GMC hospital Jammu. On October 3, Pakistani troops and rangers violated ceasefire in Gulamarg sector of Kashmir Valley and in Poonch and Jammu sectors in which a girl was killed and six persons were injured. There have been a dozen ceasefire violations along Indo-Pak border in Jammu and Kashmir during last four days. A large number of houses were damaged and livestock perished in the firing and shelling, said Devender Singh, who was leading a team that shifted the injured people to hospital during the heavy shelling. “People living in critical zones along the border will be evacuated,” he said The BSF spokesman said that the force did not suffer any casualty.
Fear was writ large on the faces of kin of the injured, who were shifted to the hospital here. “We thought we will die any time, such was the firing of mortar bombs and their bursting sound,” Karan Singh of Pindi village said. “We have become sitting ducks for Pakistan to target us. Government should do something immediately. We cannot live on the border to die,” Rano Devi said.
Congress and BJP said the ceasefire violations by Pakistan were a “serious” issue and it should desist from such activities. “Whatever Pakistan is doing is certainly a serious matter. And we want to tell Pakistan that indulging in such activities is not good for that country,” BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said.
Condemning Pakistan’s actions, former External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said it is despicable that such incidents have occurred on Eid.
On Sunday, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire by resorting to unprovoked and heavy firing on Indian forward posts along LoC in Balnoie sub-sector of Poonch district. On October 4, Pakistani troops resorted to firing and mortar shelling along LoC in in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, drawing retaliation from Army. On October 1 and 2, Pakistani troops violated ceasefire two times along LoC in Poonch district resulting in injuries to six people, including three women.
Condemning the shelling on civilians in Arnia belt of Jammu that left five dead, J-K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that the targeting of civilian areas exposed the frustration of the Pakistani government after its failure to gain international attention on the Kashmir issue.
“They (the Pakistani leadership) have nothing else to speak, but only Kashmir. Whenever they go abroad, they try to raise only Kashmir issue, but every time they miserably fail to get international attention. The cross-border shelling is an indication of their frustration,” he told reporters after meeting civilians injured in the shelling at the Government Medical College Hospital here.
Omar strongly condemned the firing and said, “Either we are unable to understand Pakistan’s motive behind the increase in the incidents of ceasefire violations or the internal situation in Pakistan is so bad that by targeting Indian side they want to divert the attention of their own people from their internal turmoil.” (PTI)