News Analysis India

Tag: Pakistan

  • Pakistan violates ceasefire in Jammu & Kashmir’s Poonch

    By ANI
    POONCH: Pakistan violated ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) in the Mankote sector in Poonch district on Tuesday.

    “On February 2, at about 2.45 pm Pakistan initiated unprovoked ceasefire violation by firing with small arms and shelling with mortars along the line of control (LoC) in Mankote sector, district Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir,” the Indian Army said.

    The Indian Army is retaliating befittingly.

    Earlier on January 21, Pakistan violated the ceasefire in Poonch in which an Army personnel was killed.

  • Civilian injured in Pakistan shelling along LoC in J-K’s Poonch district

    By PTI
    JAMMU: A 20-year-old man was injured as Pakistani troops opened fire and lobbed mortars at forward posts and civilian areas along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district on Thursday, officials said.

    The injured was identified as Mohammed Ikhlak, a resident of Shahpur village, they said.

    The Pakistani army opened fire with small arms and lobbed mortars along the LoC in Shahpur sector, the officials said.

    Ikhlak was injured in the firing and rushed to the hospital for treatment, they said.

    In 2020, Jammu and Kashmir recorded over 5,400 instances of ceasefire violations by Pakistan, the highest in the past 19 years, along the LoC.

    A total of 36 people were killed and over 130 injured in these ceasefire violations, according to the officials.

    They said the shelling and firing by Pakistani troops last year was “very heavy”, virtually making the 2003 India-Pakistan border truce redundant.

    “Pakistani troops repeatedly targeted forwards posts and villages along the Line of Control and the International Border to create a fear psychosis among the people and destabilise the peace along the borderline,” a senior police officer said.

  • ‘It is travesty of justice’: India on Pakistan court’s order to release Omar Saeed Sheikh

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: With Pakistan Supreme Court ordering release of Omar Saeed Sheikh, the prime suspect in the murder of journalist Daniel Pearl, India on Thursday said it is a travesty of justice not to find him guilty of any charge in the heinous act of terror.

    The Pakistan Supreme Court has ordered the release of Sheikh while dismissing an appeal against his acquittal in the sensational kidnapping and murder of Daniel Pearl in 2002.

    External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Anurag Srivastava said the case truly demonstrates Pakistan’s intent on tackling terrorism.

    “I had mentioned earlier about the very low conviction rate in Pakistan when it comes to sentencing of terror accused. This case truly demonstrates Pakistan’s intent on taking action on terror front,” he said at a media briefing when asked about the order by Pakistan Supreme Court.

    “It is a travesty of justice not to find Omar Saeed guilty of any charge in this heinous act of terror,” Srivastava said.

    “Our position on Pakistan taking sustained, verifiable, credible and irreversible action against terrorism and terrorist funding emanating from all territory under its control remain unchanged,” he said.

    Sheikh is one of three terrorists released by India in 1999 in exchange for nearly 150 passengers of a hijacked airliner.

    Pearl, the 38-year-old South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, was abducted and beheaded while he was in Pakistan investigating a story in 2002 on the links between the country’s powerful spy agency ISI and al-Qaeda.

    Sheikh and his three aides — Fahad Naseem, Sheikh Adil and Salman Saqib — were convicted and sentenced in the abduction and murder of Pearl in Karachi in 2002.

    A three-judge bench of the apex court led by Justice Mushir Alam dismissed the Sindh government’s appeal against the Sindh High Court’s decision to overturn the conviction of Sheikh in the Pearl murder case.

    The beheading of the American journalist in 2002 had grabbed international headlines.

  • Homecoming: 65-year-old woman freed from Pakistani jail returns to Aurangabad after 18 years

    By ANI
    AURANGABAD: 65-year-old Hasina Begum who had gone to Pakistan 18 years ago to meet her husband’s relatives but landed up in a Pakistani jail after she lost her passport, returned to India on Tuesday after Aurangabad police filed a report on the matter.

    She was received by her relatives and Aurangabad police officials upon her return here.

    “I went through a lot of hardships and I am feeling a sense of peace after returning to my country. I am feeling as if I am in heaven. I was imprisoned forcefully in Pakistan,” she said.

    “I want to thank Aurangabad police for filing a report in the matter,” she added.

    Khwaja Jainuddin Chishti, a relative of Hasina Begum, also thanked Aurangabad police for the help provided by them in bringing her back to her home country.

    Begum had lost her passport in Lahore after arriving there 18 years ago to meet her husband’s relatives.

    She was locked up in a jail in Pakistan for the last 18 years.

    According to the information received from the police, Begum who is a resident of Rashidpura area under the City Chowk police station limits in Aurangabad is married to Dilshad Ahmed who is a resident of Uttar Pradesh’s Saharanpur.

    She urged the court in Pakistan that she is innocent after which the court sought information in the matter.

    Aurangabad police sent information to Pakistan that Begum has a home registered in her name under the City Chowk police station in Aurangabad.

    Pakistan released Begum last week and handed her over to Indian authorities.

  • Youth spotted at lover’s house in Barmer lands in Pakistan prison 

    Express News Service
    JAIPUR: Fear is no mean motivator, for it vies with love to push the frontiers of capacity. If it was love that made this 20-year-old to travel 200 km to meet his girlfriend, it was the fear of getting caught that pushed him across the border into a Pakistan jail, where he is currently cooling his heels.

    The local police were racking their brains to trace the whereabouts of the youth, who had been missing since the night of November 5 last. According to sources, he had been sent to work at Jodhpur by his family. On November 5, he reached Barmer and landed at his girlfriend’s house.

    However, he was spotted while entering the house by the girl’s family. The youth made a run for it, but had gone missing after that.  Details of his whereabouts emerged when the Pakistan Rangers and the Border Security Force (BSF) held a meeting on November 12 on the repatriation of some goats and sheep that had inadvertently crossed into India.

    It was during this discussion that the Rangers passed information to their Indian counterparts about a Rajasthan youth nabbed by them on November 6. The Bijraad police heaved a sigh of relief after the BSF passed on the information to them recently. 

    Bijraad police station officer said that the youth’s father had lodged a missing complaint on November 16, and they had been searching for him in vain. “We were nonplussed as there were evidence that the youth had visited his girlfriend’s house, but there was no clue of him after that,” the official said.

    While the goats and sheep were sent back to Pakistan, call on the youth’s repatriation will be taken by the Pakistan High Commission. Rajasthan shares a 1,041-km border with Pakistan. This brorder is patrolled by the BSF. How the youth managed to evade the BSF eyes is anybody’s guess. However, the local police can now call off their wild goose hunt. 

  • Two Jammu and Kashmir policemen receive awards for saving lives during Pakistan ceasefire violations

    By PTI
    JAMMU: Two policemen received ‘Jeevan Raksha Padak’ awards on Saturday for saving the lives of civilians during ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the Line of Control in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir in March 2018, an official said.

    Selection Grade Constable Maqsood Ahmad in Poonch district police and Follower Zakir Hussain of sixth battalion J&K Armed Police (JKAP) were awarded ‘Jeevan Raksha Padak 2019’ by the Union Home Ministry last year.

    Poonch Deputy Commissioner Rahul Yadav and Senior Superintendent of Police Ramesh Kumar Angral handed over the awards to the policemen in a function at Dak Bungalow, Poonch, the police official said.

    He said the award comprises a medal, certificate and cash reward of Rs 1 lakh. The function was attended by other senior civil and police officers of the district who appreciated the role of police personnel for their bravery.

  • Don’t test Indian Army’s patience: Gen MM Naravane sends clear message to China, Pakistan

    Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: In a strongly worded message to China and Pakistan, Indian Army Chief Gen MM Naravane said that no one should try to test the military’s patience with regard to defending the country’s borders.

    “We are committed to finding the resolution of our disputes through discussions and political efforts but no one should commit the mistake of testing our patience,” he said in an address at the Army Day parade in Delhi’s Cariappa Parade ground.

    While there is palpable tension with China along the Line of Actual Control in Eastern Ladakh, with armies of the two countries deployed in standoff position, Pakistan is resorting to unprovoked ceasefire violations along the Line of Control and is resorting to a proxy war in Kashmir.

    Naravane assured the countrymen that the sacrifice of soldiers in Galwan Valley will not go in vain. 

    In May last year, the Chinese People’s Liberation Army unilaterally tried to change the status quo at multiple locations along the LAC in Eastern Ladakh.

    On June 15, 2020, violent clashes took place which led to casualties on both sides.

    While 20 Indian soldiers were martyred, China did not make its count public despite admitting to casualties. 

    Naravane also said that the army had eliminated over 200 terrorists in Kashmir in the last year alone. 

    “Around 300-400 terrorists are waiting in training camps near the border to infiltrate into the Indian territory. Number of ceasefire violations went up by 44 per cent last year, which shows the nefarious intentions of Pakistan,” he said.

    Talking about the insurgency in the Northeast, the Army Chief said there has been some improvement on that front.

    “Over 600 terrorists have surrendered and seized a large of cache of arms and ammunition. With the help of the Myanmar Army, we conducted operations and got huge success,” Naravane said.

    Naravane also talked about the challenges surrounding the modernisation process and said there have been Capital procurements and steps have also been taken to develop future military technologies.

    “We have procured arms and ammunition worth Rs 5,000 crore under emergency and fast track schemes and under capital procurement, we have signed contracts of Rs 13,000 crore this year,” he added.

    Works on new-age technologies like Artificial Intelligence, blockchain, quantum computing, unmanned systems, directed energy weapons, and swarm drones are continuing in collaboration with the institutions like Indian Institute of Technology (IITs)

    Indian Army has identified 29 projects worth Rs 32,000 crore for its modernisation initiative as part of the ‘Make in India’ initiative.

  • India should be prepared to deal with ‘two-front’ threat scenario: Gen MM Naravane

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Pakistan and China together form a potent threat to national security and their collusive approach towards India cannot be wished away, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane said on Tuesday.

    Addressing a press conference ahead of Army Day, Gen Naravane elaborated extensively on the situation in eastern Ladakh, and said Indian troops have been maintaining a very high level of combat readiness to effectively deal with any eventualities in the region.

    The Chief of Army staff said he was hopeful that India and China will be able to reach an agreement for disengagement and de-escalation based on an approach of mutual and equal security.

    At the same time, Gen Naravane, apparently referring to capture of certain strategic heights along the southern bank of Pangong lake by the Indian Army, said his force will hold on to its positions in eastern Ladakh based on its national interest and goals.

    Talking about the overall national security challenges, the Army Chief said collusive approach of both China and Pakistan towards India is manifesting on the ground.

    “Pakistan and China together form a potent threat,” he said.

    The Chief of Army staff said India will have to be prepared to deal with a “two-front” threat scenario.

    He said there has been an increasing cooperation between China and Pakistan in both military and non-military sectors.

    Gen Naravane said Pakistan continues to use terrorism as an instrument of state policy and India will continue to confront the menace effectively.

    We reserve the right to respond to cross border terrorism at a time of our choosing with precision, he said.

  • Man arrested in Rajasthan on charges of spying for Pakistan

    By ANI
    JAIPUR: A special branch of Rajasthan has arrested a 42-year-old man on charges of spying for Pakistan, police said.

    Satyanarayan Paliwal, a resident of Jaisalmer, has been booked and arrested by CID (Special Branch) on charges of espionage, police further said in a press release.

    The suspect was allegedly sharing classified information about the Indian Army, police added. He was later arrested by the Crime Investigation Department (special branch), Jaipur under the Official Secrets Act, police said.

    He has confessed to being in touch with an agent of Pakistan intelligence agency and possessing sensitive military information, Rajasthan Police stated.

  • BSF hands over to six Pakistani youths who crossed border inadvertently

    By PTI
    ATTARI: The Border Security Force on Saturday handed over six Pakistani youths, who had “inadvertently” crossed over to the Indian side from along the international border in Punjab, to the Pakistan Rangers.

    A protest was lodged with the Pakistan Rangers over the incident and the youngsters were sent back at around 5:30 pm, the border guarding force said.

    The six youths, in the age group of 14-25 years and residents of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, were nabbed by a BSF patrol from near the Pul Moran border post in Amritsar around 5 pm on Friday.

    “During questioning, it came to notice that they had crossed over to the Indian territory inadvertently. Nothing objectionable was recovered from them,” the force said in a statement.

    The Border Security Force (BSF) said as the youths were “inadvertent border crossers”, it was decided to hand them to the Pakistani authorities on “humanitarian grounds”.

    The border force, local police and central intelligence agencies had earlier grilled the youths.