The Indian Army on Thursday clarified the ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto India-Pakistan border in Jammu and Kashmir, continues to be observed as per the understanding between the two armies amid reports of major “Pakistani casualties” in an Indian retaliation to a true violation.
In a statement, the Army said tension due to some “stray incidents” of cross-LoC firing and a suspected Improvised explosive device (IED) blast was being dealt with through the established mechanism. “No exchange of fire of heavy-calibre weapons has taken place,” said the statement.
The ceasefire, which resumed in February 2021 after back-channel contacts mostly between intelligence and security officials in third countries, has largely held even as the India-Pakistan ties have been at an all-time low. The two sides have not had any official talks since the November 2008 Mumbai attacks ended a composite dialogue.
The ceasefire resumption was a major breakthrough after the two countries were on the verge of another war following the Pulwama attack on a paramilitary convoy in Kashmir two years earlier. The attack prompted India to carry out airstrikes deep inside Pakistani territory, triggering retaliation a day later.
India and Pakistan issued a rare joint statement in February 2021 saying the director generals of military operations spoke on their dedicated hotline and agreed to “strict observance of all agreements, understandings and cease firing along the Line of Control and all other sectors in the interest of achieving mutually beneficial and sustainable peace along the borders and to address each other’s core issues and concerns which have the propensity to disturb the peace and lead to violence.”
The Indian Army’s statement on Thursday said minor incidents are not unprecedented along the LoC and that concerns have been raised with the Pakistan Army at the appropriate level. It added the situation remains stable and is being closely monitored. “Indian Army maintains [a] high state of alertness and is dominating the Line of Control.”
People aware of the matter said small arms were used in cross-LoC firing at Tarkundi in Poonch’s Bhimber Gali and prompted Indian retaliation on Wednesday. “Wednesday afternoon around 1500 hrs [3pm] Pakistan Army fired around 15 rounds on Indian troops at a post in Tarkundi area…,” said an army officer. He added the Indian troops retaliated in adjoining Krishna Ghati and the extent of damage was unknown.
A 2.27-minute video clip purportedly of a Pakistan Army officer attending the funeral of soldiers was circulated on social media and shows him telling the mourners to pray for those killed in the retaliatory fire. He named Havaldar Sajjad being among the dead Pakistani soldiers. HT could not verify the authenticity of the clip.
A junior commissioned officer (JCO) of the Indian Army sustained minor injuries when he accidentally stepped over a landmine along the LoC on Wednesday evening. The JCO was part of a patrol to prevent infiltration.
The Army has been on an alert along the LoC in the Kashmir Valley amid fears of infiltration due to less snowfall than usual. Lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha chaired a security review meeting in Srinagar on Wednesday, where he was briefed about the overall situation, especially along the LoC.
A captain was among two Indian Army personnel killed in an IED explosion near the LoC in Jammu’s Akhnoor sector on Tuesday. On Monday, a soldier was injured while manning a post in the Kalal area of the Nowshera sector in Rajouri district. An Army patrol was fired upon from across the LoC in Rajouri’s Keri sector on Sunday amid an infiltration bid.
Lieutenant General Navin Sachdeva, the general officer commanding the 16 Corps, on February 10 reviewed “hostile activities” along the LoC in Rajouri and urged the troops to remain prepared for all contingencies.