Taking objection to a Border Action Team(BAT) action in which three Indian soldiers were killed in Rajouri in the Jammu region on Sunday, India will lodge a strong protest with Pakistan on Tuesday during the Directors General Military Operations(DGMO)talks. The Army had issued a stern warning to Pakistan soon after the incident at the sector level and asked Pakistan to take back the bodies of two intruders killed in the gunfight during the ambush. However, Pakistan is yet to respond.
The office of DGMOs of two countries talk to each other on the hotline every week and officials said here on Monday, the Indian Army will take up the latest incident. A Brigadier from our side and a Colonel from Pakistan will hold parleys.
Explaining the rationale for protest, they said the two DGMOs during their talks on May 29 at the behest of Pakistan decided to maintain peace and the Line of Control(LOC). India at that time also urged the Pakistan Army to restraint terrorists operating from its soil. Since then, the Indian Army has shown utmost restraint in maintaining ceasefire at the LOC despite provocations by the other side and Pakistan continuing to aid and abet terrorists, they said.
"Pakistan Army has been informed through established communication channels to take over the bodies of the hostile Pakistani nationals. A stern warning has been conveyed to Pakistan Army to restrain the terrorists operating from its soil," officials said, adding the two heavily armed intruders were donning the Indian army combat fatigues including standard issues boots. Most infiltrators including those of BAT wear Indian army fatigues to avoid detection in the fog of gunfight. The BAT comprises Pakistan army commandoes and terrorists and they target Indian army patrols along the LOC to inflict casualties and then escape back to Pakistani side. The Indian protest was conveyed through log message on the telephone in Rajouri, they added. Log message implies that both the sides officially note down the communiqué.
In the latest ambush close to the LOC on the Indian side, three soldiers of 8 Jammu & Kashmir Light Infantry (JAKLI) Havildar Kaushal Kumar of Nowshera (Rajouri), Lance Naik Ranjeet Singh of Doda and rifleman Rajat Kumar Basan of Pallanwala (Jammu) were killed and Rifleman Rakesh Kumar of Samba was injured. Officials said the raiding Pakistan party included five to six persons and two of them were killed in retaliatory action.
As regards the Pakistan Army actions despite talks on May 29, they said the Pakistan Army is persistently attempting to push terrorists from its territory into India across the LOC. Backing this with figures, officials said seven infiltration bids were foiled by the Army since May 30, in which 23 terrorists have been killed.
Moreover, reports indicated concentration of large number of terrorists in the launch pads desperate to infiltrate before the onset of snow. At least 250 to 300 trained and armed militants are poised to sneak into Kashmir from the launch pads close to the LOC in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir(POK). The Army troops are alert and maintaining round-the-clock vigil to scuttle any attempt of infiltration by the terrorists.