Despite Indian DGMO’s Warning, Pak Troops Resort To ‘Unprovoked’ Firing Along LoC & IB

SRINAGAR: The Indian Army said on Wednesday that the Pakistani troops initiated unprovoked firing along the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border (IB) in Jammu and Kashmir ant that it responded in a “measured and effective” manner.

They said that Pakistani troops have since April 25 resorted to nightly firings in different sectors of the 740-km LoC and lately also at multiple points along the 198-km long IB, often using small arms. Each ceasefire violation was retaliated to by Indian forces, using the same calibre weapons, they added.

As per officials, no casualties were reported in these violations on the Indian side. Some Pakistani social media accounts had at the weekend reported two fatal casualties in the Indian firing and said that both ‘victims’ were shepherds “who had gone near the LoC in search of their lost sheep”. Officially, Pakistan has not confirmed it or commented on the Indian allegation of its troops continuously violating the November 2003 ceasefire renewed by the two sides in February 2021.

The defence analysts say that the recent incidents of Pakistani forces opening fire along the LoC following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack which has pushed the two sides to the brink of conflict appear to be a calculated move to signal alertness and deter perceived Indian military actions.

The continuous violations prompted Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) of the Indian Army, Lieutenant General P.R. Suresh, to issue a stern warning to his Pakistani counterpart, the miliary sources in New Delhi and Srinagar said. During a hotline discussion held on Tuesday, Lt. Gen. Suresh is reported to have told him that Pakistan should not try India’s patience and cease such actions forthwith.

The India DGMO’s warning, signalling his country’s intolerance for cross-border provocations, came a few hours after Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, gave the armed forces complete operational freedom to decide on the timing, targets and mode of response to Pakistan for the Pahalgam terror attack. India has vowed to “identify, track and punish” the terrorists and their backers and growing indications suggest that it may be preparing to target the “culpable” sooner than later.

The Army said that the Pakistani troops engaged in unprovoked firing along the LoC and the IB in multiple sectors across J&K’s four border districts- Rajouri, Jammu, Baramulla and Kupwara- overnight and that the Indian forces responded “effectively” and “in a measured manner”.

It said that the small arms firing began in the Pargwal sector along the IB in Jammu district, and the Sunderbani and Naushera sectors in Rajouri district and soon expanded to Baramulla and Kupwara, marking the sixth consecutive night of violations.

The LoC is primarily the responsibility of the Indian Army, which serves as the first line of defence against external threats and ceasefire violations, while the Border Security Force (BSF) acts as a second line of defence, supporting the Army in specific LoC scenarios. The BSF is primarily tasked to guard the 198-km stretch of the India-Pakistan border in Jammu region. Being part of the 2,912 km India-Pakistan border from Gujarat to J&K, it starts at Paharpur in Kathua district and ends at Chicken’s Neck corridor in Akhnoor sector where the LOC begins. In India, this 198-km stretch of the borderline is called International Border (IB) but is known as ‘Working Boundary’ in Pakistan as it passes through a “disputed region”. In public parlance it is often referred to as ‘Sialkot-Jammu border’, however.

On February 26, 2021, India and Pakistan had recommitted themselves to the November 2003 ceasefire agreement along the LoC and other sectors in J&K and agreed to address the issues that could undermine the peace and stability along the borders in a “free, frank and cordial’ fashion.

After a’ hotline contact’ between India’s then DGMO Lieutenant General Paramjit Sangha and his Pakistani counterparty Major General Nauman Zakaria held a day earlier, the two sides had “agreed for strict observance of all agreements, understandings and cease firing along the LoC and all other sectors, with effect from midnight 24/25 February 2021.”

The two countries had in November 2003 agreed to cease fire along the LoC and the IB. The agreement held for a few years, but regular violations started occurring in 2008 and the clashes between the two sides witnessed a sharp spike in 2012 and onwards, leaving hundreds of civilians and security personnel dead or wounded and a trail of destruction on both sides of the divide line. The two sides blamed each other for each violation of the ceasefire.

The ceasefire agreement has largely been held since February 2021, much to the relief of the border residents. While, as a ceasefire dividend, the agricultural and trade activities had been going on smoothly, development works also gathered pace in the entire border belt. Educational institutions began working normally without any closures or disruptions due to cross-border shelling. Also, several border areas like Gurez, Bungus, Kaman Post and Tangdhar were opened to tourists and these soon became popular destinations.

But the Pahalgam carnage has reignited tensions along the LoC and the IB. Though the ceasefire has not fully collapsed, the recurrence of skirmishes indicates the fragile truce is at risk of unravelling. The border residents say that they had been living smooth lives for the past few years and if active hostilities break out between the two countries, they may again have to bear the brunt as they did in the past particularly between 2010 and 2020.

In the backdrop of rising tensions, the entire J&K and parts of Ladakh were last week put on high security alert. Particularly the areas bordering with Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir have witnessed rapid security placements, an enhanced multi-faceted surveillance and improved coordination between various security agencies.

The authorities restricted the movements of non-locals in various areas falling in proximity to the LoC. The visits to the areas including Karnah, Keran, Machil, and the Bungus Valley in Kupwara district which with neighbouring Baramulla’s Kaman Post were witnessing a ‘border tourism’ boom for the past couple of years have been made subject to prior approval by the designated authorities. Kaman Post in the Uri-Chakothi border corridor through which cross-LoC trade and travel would take place until these was suspended by the Union Home Ministry a few years ago figures in the list of 48 places declared closed for tourists by the authorities on Tuesday.