Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, June 19: For the first time during the current year, Pakistan Army today resorted to heavy firing using 82mm mortars, artillery guns, Heavy and Medium Machine Guns etc in virtually entire Poonch district including Poonch, Sabjian, Krishna Ghati and Mandi sector for over five and a half hours during the day. The small arms firing, however, continued till late this evening.
Heavy firing by Pakistani troops, according to official sources, was aimed at pushing a group of four heavily armed militants through Krishna Ghati sector by engaging the troops all over the district, two of whom were believed to have been killed while trying to retreat while a civilian was seriously injured in Shahpur after being hit by splinters of a bullet during Pakistani firing. However, there was no official confirmation of the killings.
It was after a long time that Pakistani shells and bullets landed in the forward villages causing injuries to a civilian reminding the people living close to the Line of Control (LoC) about pre-ceasefire agreement days of 2003 when the civilians used to bore brunt of the Pakistani firing.
Sources expressed surprise that after the takeover of Pakistan Government by PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, the firing by Pakistan Army and attempts to infiltrate militants from the LoC have witnessed a spurt notwithstanding the offers of Mr Sharif for pursuing peace with India.
Sources said Pakistan Army opened up their heavy guns at 9.50 am today targeting Kranti, Ravi and Kirpan posts in Krishna Ghati sector from their forward posts of Battal, Daaku and Chuha. Under the cover of firing, the Indian troops clearly observed movement of four armed militants making a desperate attempt to sneak into this side of the LoC.
As the troops retaliated to neutralize the militants, Pakistani troops opened up almost all other sectors in Poonch district targeting Sher Shakti, PP-1 and PP-2 Posts in Mandi sector from their Jullan, Zurwan Darkhat and Neza Peer Posts, Bahadur, Rekha and Neck Posts in Poonch sector from their Jora-1 and Jora-2 Posts and Kodina and Jabri Posts in Sabjian sector from their Tullan Wali post.
“The Indian side retaliated to counter firing by the Pakistan Army and prevent any infiltration by the militants,” sources said, adding the intrusion bid by a group of four heavily armed militants was foiled and there were reports that two of them were believed dead while retreating to Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) from where they had been launched into this side.
“There were no casualties of Army or damage on Indian side,” Army spokesman S N Acharya said.
All four militants were believed to be Pakistanis and were in possession of heavy firearms and explosive material. However, as per the strategy, the militants didn’t open firing and started running towards the Indian territory simultaneously when Pakistani posts started raining mortars and bullets.
A civilian Shafeeq-ur-Rehman son of Saraf Din, a resident of Shahpur was hit by splinters of shells and bullets in his head in the forward village and injured seriously. Army and police evacuated him from the village and shifted him to District Hospital in Poonch, where he was responding to the treatment.
Sources said though no dead bodies of the militants have been traced as the area was right on the LoC and there was thick growth of vegetation, there were enough indications that one or two of them were killed while fleeing back to Pakistan after the Indian troops opened firing on observing movement of the infiltrators.
Sources said heavy firing from Pakistan side with mortars, artillery guns, Heavy and Medium Machine Guns stopped at 2.30 pm at Krishna Ghati sector and 5.30 pm at Poonch sector. By 4 pm, heavy firing had stopped in the entire district. However, intermittent firing from Pakistan side continued till late this evening when the reports last came in.
This was for the fourth time in past fortnight when Pakistan Army resorted to day light firing along the LoC in Poonch sector with a view to push armed infiltrators into this side. In the past three days, Army have recovered four-AK rifles and a large quantity of ammunition in Sabjian sub sector of Poonch, which were freshly smuggled into this side but the troops seized them before they could land into the hands of the infiltrators.
Sources said the Indian side exercised restraint and gave calibrated response only to the extent of thwarting the infiltration attempt while Pakistan Army resorted to heavy arms firing, an unusual phenomenon for the past quite sometime, which indicated desperation on the part of Pakistan Army to push the trained militants into this side.
This was after a long time on the LoC in twin districts of Poonch and Rajouri that Pakistani mortars and bullets fell in the villages causing injuries to a civilian. The civilians during the heavy firing in the day were reminded of pre-ceasefire agreement days when Pakistani shelling and firing targeting the forward villages was a routine. However, it was in November 2003 that India and Pakistan had reached ceasefire agreement on the LoC and International Border leading to peace on the borders for the people though Pakistan Army continued to target Indian Army and BSF posts to push infiltrators, violating ceasefire.
Sources said almost all day-light ceasefire violations by Pakistan Army were aimed at pushing infiltrators into this side. Pakistan Army had changed strategy of trying to infiltrate the militants during the day as their attempts to push them in the night had been thwarted by the alert troops after observing movement of the militants through Night Vision Devices.
“At this time, there was thick growth of vegetation all along the LoC and weather was also adverse with rains mostly lashing the area. Pakistan Army was trying to take advantage of this situation to push the militants into Jammu and Kashmir,” sources said.
A day before Northern Army Commander Lt Gen KT Parnaik had confirmed that 300 to 400 militants were camping at the launching pads on Pakistan side hoping to infiltrate into this side. However, he said, the troops were fully alive to the situation and won’t allow the infiltration bids to succeed.
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