2 soldiers killed, 5 injured in Pak firing along LoC

Amir Tantray

Tribune News Service

Jammu, November 6

Two Indian Army soldiers were killed and five others — two soldiers, two civilian women and a BSF officer — were injured on Sunday after the Pakistan Army resorted to unprovoked shelling at Indian positions along the Line of Control (LoC) in Krishna Ghati and Poonch sectors of Poonch district.

At least four places came under indiscriminate shelling and firing, which has been started by the Pakistan Army to target civil and defence facilities in the area, a police official said here.

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"Gursevak Singh of 22 Sikh regiment and another soldier were martyred in Pakistan firing today (Sunday)," the official said, adding that the ceasefire violation also continues in Balnoi area of the district. 

Singh hailed from Taran Taran in Punjab.

He said two jawans were also injured. "The Indian Army has effectively retaliated using same calibre weapons, shelling and firing exchanges is still on," he said.

The soldier killed Poonch sector has been identified as Naik Tukpare Rajendra Narayan of Maharashtra's Kolhapur district.

A BSF Sub-Inspector, Nitin Kumar, was also injured in the firing.

In Krishna Ghati, Pakistani army opened fire in a bid to facilitate two infiltration bids, killing Sepoy Gursevak Singh, an army officer said, adding that the attempts to push in infiltrators have been foiled.

The injured women have been identified Saleema Akhtar and Zareefa Begum, both residents of Poonch.

Zareefa Begum works as a special police officer. They have been admitted to a hospital in Poonch where their conditions were stated to be stable, a police officer said.

Sunday's unprovoked ceasefire violation on the border came after a lull of two days when an uneasy calm prevailed on the LoC and the International Border.

"Unprovoked ceasefire violation by Pakistan army in Poonch sector from 1015 hours using 120 mm mortars, 82 mm mortars and automatic weapons," an army spokesman said, adding that "our troops are responding befittingly, there has been heavy damage to Pakistan army posts."

"The army foiled two infiltration bids on the intervening night of November 5 and 6 along Line of Control (LoC) in Krishna Ghati sector," he said.

"The infiltrators opened fire while trying to sneak back towards Pakistan-occupied Kashmir side of the Line of Control (LoC). In the ensuing firefight with infiltrators, Sepoy Gursevak Singh suffered gunshot wound and succumbed to his injuries while being evacuated," he said.

The violation of the ceasefire agreement by Pakistani side has become a rule rather than an exception after the Indian Army on September 28 night carried out surgical strikes against terrorist launch pads across the Line of Control in Pakistani side of Kashmir.  — With inputs from Agencies