Four civilians, including three children and one woman, were injured in cross border firing in Pargwal area of Akhnoor sector on Thursday as Pakistani Rangers thrice violated the ceasefire agreement in Hiranagar, RS Pura and Akhnoor sectors of Jammu frontier.
The ‘unprovoked’ firing incidents instantly spread panic in the border areas as large number of farmers and villagers were caught in the crossfire between the two sides for several hours. Pakistani Rangers had selectively picked up their targets and the timing to target the civilians at a time when they were out in their fields in large numbers.
After targeting the civilian areas along the line of Control in Poonch, now Pakistani Rangers have started targeting the civilians along the International border in Jammu with an aim to spread the ‘arc of terror’.
According to ground reports, “In the heavy exchange of firing between the BSF and Pakistani Rangers in RS Pura sector, one of the Pakistani Rangers may have succumbed due to fatal injuries while another was seriously injured.” The firing which started in the area around 9.30 am went on till afternoon.
Meanwhile, three children hailing from Najwal village of Pargwal were injured when they were hit by splinters of mortar shell while Nisha Devi, wife of Sikander Singh, was hit by a bullet while she was passing through one of the village lanes close to the International border around 1.30 pm.
According to police reports, the firing in the area started around 1 pm and at least three Indian posts in Najwal, Manjotha and Malkula were targeted by the Pakistani rangers. The majority of villagers were stunned as Pargwal area was targeted after a long gap.
The three injured children are siblings and have been identified as a 12-year-old Rama Kumari, 14-year-old Asha Devi and 11-year-old Surjeet. Sham lal, father of three said my children were injured as one of the shells exploded near my house.
Earlier, in the morning alert BSF jawans had picked up some suspected movement near the Kharkola border post along the International border in RS Pura sector and when they challenged them the Pakistani Rangers deployed near (Chumbian BoP toward Pakistani side) opened fire on the Indian BoP.
In the heavy exchange of fire, which lasted for about two hours, BSF jawans retaliated strongly. Unconfirmed reports claimed that one Pakistani Ranger succumbed to his injuries while another was seriously injured. During the heavy exchange of fire, a large number of farmers remained stranded in their fields and were escorted one by one by BSF jawans and villagers to prevent further loss of life.
According to BSF sources, the firing in the RS Pura sector started past 9.30 pm near Kharkola border post. According to ground reports the Pakistani rangers fired mortar shells and used automatic weapons to target the Indian posts.
Firing was also reported from Ghagwal area of Hiranagar sector of Jammu frontier late Thursday night. The border residents in the area are disturbed as they have been forced to stay awake following heavy exchange of fire.
Earlier in the day, angry villagers accused Pakistani Rangers of targeting them when their crops are ready for harvesting.