New Delhi: The government has given the Border Security Force (BSF) a free hand to respond to shelling and firing from Pakistan along the International Border (IB) in Jammu, a senior BSF official told The Hindu on Friday.
The official said that after the cross-Line of Control ‘surgical strikes’ by the Indian Army on September 29, the situation remained peaceful along the 192-km-long IB but the scenario changed after Raheel Sharif, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Pakistan visited the Pakistan Rangers headquarters a few days ago. Pakistan began pounding the civilian areas in Jammu from the intervening night of October 19-20, after four militants were pushed back in Hiranagar.
Arun Kumar, Additional Director General, BSF (western frontier) told The Hindu , “It is good that the decision has been left to the forces on how to retaliate. There is no confusion over chain of command or instructions.”
The border guarding forces, BSF and Pakistan Rangers, had activated hotlines in 2015 and had put in a system to resolve any flare-up on the IB by effective communication. At least 14 hotlines were activated along the Pakistan border from Gujarat to Jammu and the ceasefire violations came down to nine from 253 recorded before the talks.
Mr. Kumar said that targeting of civilian areas around Diwali was noticed in 2013 and 2014. “This is not the first time this [shelling and firing] is happening. This time it got significance obviously because of developments post-Uri. Pakistan has adopted a two-pronged strategy; one to help infiltrators to cross by giving them cover fire from their posts and second to violate the ceasefire pact….they never thought there will be prompt reaction. But this time they committed the mistake of sniping our jawan.”
Constable Gurnam Singh (24) was killed on October 20 in a sniper attack, a day after he successfully pushed back four terrorists from infiltrating in the Hiranagar sector.
“In the first week of October, COAS, Pakistan visited the headquarters of Pakistan Rangers. And after that the scenario has changed. Issue with that country is that even martyrs are not recognised. That is why they are denying the deaths of seven Rangers. We can see their posts are burning but they are denying everything due to internal compulsion,” Mr. Kumar said.
He added that the kind of ammunition being fired from across the border was proof that the Pakistan Rangers had been joined by the Pakistan Army.
