Srinagar: Pakistan violated the ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir for the fourth straight night, with its troops resorting to unprovoked firing in Kupwara-Poonch sector, officials said on Monday morning.
There were no report of any casualty but the situation remains tense. "During the night of April 27-28, Pakistan Army posts initiated unprovoked small arms fire across the Line of Control in areas opposite Kupwara and Poonch districts," the Indian Army said in a statement, adding that they responded "swiftly and effectively".
This was the first time that the Pakistan Army violated the ceasefire in the Poonch sector. The exchange of fire between Indian and Pakistani troops started after 26 people were killed in a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam last Tuesday.
Tensions remain high along the LoC even as security forces intensified anti-terror operations in the Kashmir valley in the aftermath of the Phalgam terror attack that killed 26 people on April 22.
The Indian Army said its own troops responded effectively with appropriate small arms fire. Meanwhile, Kulgam Police, in a coordinated operation with the Army and CRPF, arrested two terrorist associates and recovered a cache of arms and ammunition in south Kashmir's Kulgam district.
According to an official release, during a routine checkpoint established at Matalhama Chowk Thokerpora, Qaimoh, two individuals were intercepted and subsequently arrested. Upon their search, security forces recovered two pistols, two pistol magazines, and 25 rounds of pistol ammunition from their possession.A case under relevant sections of law has been registered at Police Station Qaimoh, and an investigation has been launched to probe further.
Ties between India and Pakistan have strained further after the role of a terror group linked to Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba emerged in the Pahalgam terror attack -- the worst in Jammu and Kashmir since the Pulwama attack.
India has slapped Pakistan with a series of strict measures, including expulsion of Pakistani military attaches, suspension of the over six-decade-old Indus Waters Treaty and immediate shutting down of the Attari land-transit post.
J&K Lt Governor Manoj Sinha had a security review meeting with the Army Chief, General Upendra Dwivedi, in Srinagar on Sunday. The L-G has asked the Army to use whatever force is required to hunt down the perpetrators of the Pahalgam terror attack.
Meanwhile, to send a powerful message to terrorists, their overground workers (OGWs) and sympathisers, the security forces continue to demolish the houses of terrorists. (With agency inputs)
