Army seeks flag meeting over ceasefire violation along LoC

The Army has sought a Brigade Commander-level flag meeting with its Pakistan counterpart along the Line of Control in the wake of killing of two jawans and injuries to four others in firing by Pakistan troops.

"We have sent a hotline message to the Pakistan Army and called for a Brigade commander-level flag meeting to discuss ceasefire violations in the Poonch sector,” a senior Army officer told PTI.

The message has been sent to the Pakistani authorities on Monday and they were asked to convey the timing of the meeting within two days, he said.

The issue had become serious in view of the fact that two jawans (one from the BSF) were killed and four others injured in direct firing on them by the Pakistan troops in four ceasefire violations since June 11 to June 16.

“Usually, a commandant-level flag meeting would be held on the LoC to sort out the differences, but this time we have called for a Brigade Commander-level meeting,” he said.

Earlier, Pakistan had cancelled the Commandant-level meeting on Chakan-Da-Bagh crossing point in Poonch on June 16 without assigning any reason.

Pakistani troops this time directly fired on the Army troops guarding the borderline in Poonch unlike in the past when they used to target the posts, the official said.

In spite of this provocative act, the Indian Army exercised restraint and asked the Pakistani Army, through the hotline channel, to investigate the matter, a defence spokesman said.

However, the Pakistan side, instead of responding to the Indian message, repeated the sniping on June 13, and killed a jawan and injured three others in the Krishnagati belt of the Poonch sector.

The flag meeting scheduled to be held at Chakan-Da-Bagh on June 16 was cancelled by Pakistan, without giving any fresh date for the same.

The trade via the Chakan-Da-Bagh crossing point remained suspended, awaiting de-escalation of the situation in the Krishna Ghati Sector.