Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Oct 3: An Army jawan today attained martyrdom as Pakistani troops again violated ceasefire on the Line of Control (LoC) and resorted to heavy firing in Krishna Ghati sector of Poonch district, taking death toll during last two days shelling and firing to three. (Click here to watch video)
Official sources said Pakistan army initiated unprovoked firing on Indian Army posts in Krishna Ghati sector at 12.50 pm today along LoC in Poonch district, which was retaliated effectively by the Indian side, leading to heavy exchanges. Exchange of shelling and firing continued for about half an hour.
In the firing, Naik Mahendra Chemjung was seriously injured and attained martyrdom while being evacuated to the hospital.
However, there were no other casualties or damage in today’s firing on the LoC, sources said, adding that Pakistani troops were also reported to have suffered extensive damage in retaliatory firing by the Indian troops but exact details of the enemy losses were yet to pour in.
Martyr Naik Mahendra Chemjung, aged 35 years, belonged to Chilingdin, Nepal and is survived by his wife Nayan Kala Chemjung and one son, sources said.
They added that Naik Chemjung was a brave and sincere soldier. “The nation will always remain indebted to him for the supreme sacrifice and devotion to duty’’.
Intensity of firing on the LoC was very less today as compared to yesterday when more than half a dozen villages in Poonch sector were shelled by Pakistan for four and a half hours leading to death of two children and injuries to 12 civilians and a BSF jawan. Three Pakistanis were killed in retaliatory shelling by the Indian side while there was massive infrastructural damage of Pakistani troops in the forward areas.
Despite no shelling or firing in civilian areas of Poonch today, people remained panicky in the border villages after yesterday’s war-like situation in many villages due to intense shelling and firing in which Pakistan army had targeted civilian areas directly.
In most of the villages, sources said, the people confined themselves to houses and didn’t venture out anticipating that Pakistan army could resume shelling and firing anytime.
Meanwhile, India today summoned Pakistan’s Deputy High Commissioner and issued a demarche over the death of minors in “unprovoked firing” by Pakistani forces in the Poonch sector yesterday.
Pakistani diplomat Syed Haider Shah was summoned to the External Affairs Ministry by the Joint Secretary, in-charge of Pakistan, and it was conveyed that “such deliberate targeting of civilians was not acceptable and was against humanitarian norms and practices,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a release in New Delhi.
A strong protest was lodged over the death of two children in “unprovoked ceasefire violation” by the Pakistani forces in the Poonch sector yesterday, it said.
Strong concern was also expressed over the continued unprovoked firing by Pakistani forces across the Line of Control and the International Boundary in violation of the 2003 ceasefire Understanding.
“503 such violations have been carried out by Pakistan forces so far during 2017,” the Ministry said.
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