India’s ‘strong demarche’ to Pakistan over death of 3 civilians in shelling
Three civilians, including a child and a woman, were killed in the shelling.
India on Monday lodged a strong protest with Pakistan over the killing of three civilians in unprovoked cross-border shelling by Pakistani troops and a “deliberate attack” on two fishing boats that injured a fisherman, people familiar with developments said.
An eight-year-old boy and a woman were among the three people killed when Pakistani troops shelled several civilian areas in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir on Sunday. The Indian Army said it responded to the ceasefire violations by targeting terror launch pads and ammunition dumps on the Pakistani side.
The people cited above, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a fisherman was injured when Pakistan’s Maritime Maritime Security Agency (MSA) made a “deliberate attack” and fired on the fishing boats Omkar and Mahasagar on Sunday. The incident occurred in waters off the coast of Gujarat state, the people said.
Strong “demarches” or formal diplomatic representations were made to the Pakistani side to protest the shelling in Kashmir and the attack on the fishing boats, the people said.
“A strong demarche was made to the Pakistani side on the killing of three innocent Indian civilians in unprovoked ceasefire violations by Pakistan forces on April 12,” said one of the people, speaking on condition of anonymity.
A second person said: “India strongly condemned the deplorable and unprofessional act by Pakistan’s Maritime Security Agency of firing at Indian fishing vessels and causing bodily harm to Indian fishermen. India called on the Pakistani authorities to instruct its forces to desist from such heinous acts.”
The people said India had protested against the deliberate targeting of civilians in cross-border shelling by Pakistani forces in Kashmir. The killing of the civilians went against humanitarian norms and professional military conduct, they said.
The Indian side also called on Pakistan to adhere to the 2003 ceasefire along the Line of Control (LoC) and international border in Kashmir.
Earlier, India’s charge d’affaires in Islamabad, Gaurav Ahluwalia, was summoned to the Foreign Office to register Pakistan’s protest over what it said were ceasefire violations in several sectors along the LoC on Sunday that resulted in the death of a child and injuries to four civilians.
New Delhi has already rejected Islamabad’s accusation, saying its troops only responded to shelling by Pakistani forces.
Pakistan’s Foreign Office, in a statement, accused Indian troops of committing 749 ceasefire violations this year along the LoC and the international border.
Both sides have accused each other of violating the 2003 ceasefire in recent years.
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