Ceasefire violations: Army Chief Bikram Singh meets Defence Minister

Zee Media Bureau/Sushmita Dutta New Delhi: In the backdrop of the escalating and ongoing ceasefire violations by Pakistani troops at the Line of Control (LoC) along the border in Jammu and Kashmir, Army Chief General Bikram Singh met Defence Minister AK Antony on Monday to brief him about the situation. General Bikram Singh and AK Antony discussed about the latest incident of ceasefire violation which took place yesterday night when Pakistani rangers opened fire at six forward posts of the Border Security Force (BSF) along the International Border (IB) in Jammu district. Throughout yesterday night, Pakistan rangers fired at 25 posts of the BSF along the IB in Samba district, Jammu, injuring a paramilitary soldier and a special police officer. As per news reports, the Pakistani rangers are continuously firing at various Indian posts along the LoC which are totally unprovoked. Meanwhile, the BSF troops retaliated effectively which triggered exchanges of firing. The latest ceasefire violation by Pak came immediately after Nawaz Sharif demanded of seeking the United States intervention to resolve the Kashmir dispute yesterday. However, the US denied intervening into the matter, saying that there has not been an "iota of change" in its policy on Kashmir which considers it a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan, dismissing the latest Pakistani efforts to seek US intervention in this regard. It`s been more than a month now but Pakistani troops are reportedly using small arms, rockets and mortars while targeting the Indian posts. Reportedly, there have been more than 200 such violations of the 2003 ceasefire this year. The incidents have also triggered a sharp reaction from the J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. While requesting the Indian Government to take up the ceasefire violation issue firmly with Pakistan, Omar said, “India should, in very strong words, tell Pakistan that such behaviour won’t be tolerated. We have to explore other options if talks are not helping put an end to ceasefire violations. This could not be a one-sided affair with no response from India.`` Nine persons including five civilians have been injured in Pakistan firing and shelling in 24 hours since Friday. Union Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde is also scheduled to visit the forward areas along the IB to review the security situation tomorrow. A total of 136 ceasefire violations have been reported in 2013, the highest in the past 8 years and Pakistan violated the ceasefire agreement 150 times this year, the highest since 2005, a Defence spokesman said.