Pakistan has escalated the tension along the line of Control (loC) by repeated ceasefire violations and blaming India for such transgressions.
In another clear signal that Islamabad has little intentions of improving ties with New Delhi, the Pakistani Government also said it has no plans of granting Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India anytime soon.
The alarming rate of ceasefire violations along the loC in Poonch and Samba sectors and at certain places along the International Border in Jammu frontier have spread panic among the border residents in Jammu & Kashmir. So far, over 60 ceasefire violations have been reported from the Pakistani side in 2013.
On Monday night, two more ceasefire violations were reported by the Army in Poonch. According to Defence PRO SN Acharya, Pakistan violated the ceasefire in Mendhar area around 9.20 pm and in Balakote around 10.15 pm and firing was going on till the time of this report going to Press.
With Pakistan showing little respect for the ceasefire agreement, Defence Minister AK Antony has said the armed forces have been given a free hand to deal with any situation on the loC. Asked to spell out the Defence Ministry’s strategy and his directive to the Army in wake of the raid and ambush by Pakistan Army and unabated ceasefire violations since Tuesday last week, Antony said: “The armed forces have the freedom to respond adequately.”
At the same time, Pakistan summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner to protest “ceasefire violations” by the Border Security Force (BSF) along the loC, claiming that it resulted in the death of a civilian at Rawalakot in PoK.
Pakistan also asked India to uphold the 2003 ceasefire agreement while committing itself to a “constructive, sustained and result-oriented process of engagement” between the two countries.
Meanwhile, The Express Tribune quoted an unnamed Pakistani Foreign Ministry official as saying that Pakistan is thinking of scaling down its diplomatic staff in New Delhi and shifting troops from its border with Afghanistan to the eastern frontier after a spike in tensions with India.
Several residents living in border villages told visiting media persons that heavy exchange of firing in the area has triggered panic among the people.
“We are forced to stay awake through the night as we cannot sleep in our homes as they come under the line of fire,” the villagers said showing bullet marks on the walls of their houses. The residents also recovered remains of mortar shells from their fields Monday morning after the firing stopped.