Pak violates ceasefire again, 2 jawans injured in Pak fire

Jammu, Nov 4 (PTI) Less than three weeks after Pakistan
promised to stop cross-border firing, its troops Tuesday
opened heavy firing on Indian positions, injuring two Border
Security Force (B.S.F.) jawans in Jammu and Kashmir.

Pakistani troops opened small arms firing from their post
on B.S.F. posts along the International Border in Makwal belt
of Jammu district before dawn, B.S.F. sources told PTI.

Two B.S.F. jawans of 141 Battalion were injured in the
firing, they said adding that they have been hospitalised.

B.S.F. troops of 141 battalion guarding the border line
observed calm despite provocation and did not retaliate.

The ceasefire violation by Pakistan came less than three
weeks after India and Pakistan decided to refrain from
cross-border firing and shelling and to preserve the sanctity
of the four-year-old ceasefire along Indo-Pak border.

This was agreed at a two-day bi-annual meeting between
Pakistan rangers and B.S.F. at Lahore on October 16 during
which Pakistan rangers Director General Lt Gen Mohammad Yaqoob
Khan promised Additional Director General B.S.F. U.K. Bansal
that there would be no ceasefire violations henceforth while
acknowledging that there had been some violations earlier.

This is the 36th ceasefire violation since January this
year and seventh in Sabzian sub-sector where two jawans were
killed in Pakistan firing in September.

The last ceasefire violation by Pakistan troops was on
October 27, when its troops shelled Indian posts, again
violating the ceasefire along the Line of Control in Sabzian
area of Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir.

The ceasefire violation and firing by Pakistan is aimed
at infiltrating militants into Jammu and Kashmir to target
forthcoming assembly elections in the state, officials said
adding that troops at the border are foiling infiltration
attempts by militants.

B.S.F. and Army has further beefed up the security along
the border and L.o.C. after intelligence reports that several
big groups of militants are waiting to enter Jammu and
Kashmir, they said.

The army's Director General of military operations had
protested to his Pakistani counterpart on a couple of
occasions over ceasefire violations, especially during the
Tangdhar firing and the Nowgam L.o.C. breach.

Breaches of the ceasefire by Pakistan have been reported
from Jammu, Peer Bhadeshwar, Samba, Rajouri, Uri, Tanghdhar
and Poonch sector this year, from where a large number of
militants have been trying to infiltrate into India.

B.S.F. and Army has assessed that the Pakistani firing
occurred whenever militant groups were making attempts to
infiltrate into India and ceasefire violations could be a
tactic to distract Indian forces along the L.o.C.

Over 132 infiltration bids have been reported in the last
nine months from across the L.o.C. in which 80 militants have
been killed. PTI A.B.
RKM