India on Saturday lodged a protest with Pakistan over the rocket attacks from its side on Friday night. The rockets exploded on farm land in the Attari area of Amritsar district of Punjab.“
There were four rocket attacks from Pakistan at about 10 p.m. The BSF immediately retaliated with machine gun and mortar fire,” BSF DIG Mohammed Aqueel told The Hindu on phone from Amritsar.
The 107 mm rockets fell on paddy fields and their impact was reduced due to the rain and water. He said there was no loss of life or damage to property.After taking retaliatory action, the BSF called its counterparts, the Pakistan Rangers and raised the issue at a flag meeting past midnight at the joint checkpost on the Attari-Wagah border.
Separately, a protest letter was sent to the border authorities, Mr. Aqueel said.The BSF opened fire after tracing the area from where the rockets were launched, he said adding that after that the situation was quiet.
Meanwhile, DIG K. Srinivasan, at the BSF headquarters here, said the rockets fell in an area of 2 km to 3.5 km and the BSF patrol could clearly see the line of fire coming from across the border.
He said that while most rockets fell in the open, one of it missed a village by 200 metres.He said the BSF conveyed its displeasure over the incident, the second such development since the July 4 attack in the same region.
He said that at that time, the BSF had raised the matter with the Pakistan Rangers at a flag meeting.
It is understood that Pakistan sought to suggest that it could be the handiwork of non-state players. India said it was the responsibility of the authorities to check such activity.
