Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Sept 11: Pakistan army this evening resorted to mortar shelling and firing in forward villages and Army posts in Sabzian sector along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district as they violated ceasefire in Balakote sector early today also.
Official sources said the Pakistani troops opened firing on forward Indian positions at 6 pm and then started targeting border villages with mortars in Sabzian sector of Poonch district forcing the troops to retaliate. Intermittent exchange of firing was going on till late tonight but there were no reports of any casualties or damage on the Indian side.
Early today, Pakistani troops resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violations in Balakote sector of Poonch district.
“The area witnessed ceasefire violations by Pakistan army between 0400 hours and 0500 hours today,” sources said.
Forward posts maintained by Pakistan fired towards the Indian side using automatic weapons and small arms, he said.
“Our side retaliated appropriately but no casualty or damage was reported,” sources said.
The firing by Pakistan comes in the midst of Indo-Pak border guard talks in Delhi during which it was agreed yesterday to end ceasefire violations by devising new strategies like joint patrolling in some areas along the International Border (IB) in the State as chiefs of BSF and Pakistan Rangers met against the backdrop of escalation in tension.
Pakistani troops have already violated the ceasefire 11 times in September this year.
Meanwhile, Army today arrested a Pakistani national Imran son of Noot Mohammad, a resident of Lahore, Pakistan, as soon as he entered into the Indian territory from forward village of Kanchi in Nowshera sector of Rajouri district.
Troops subjected Imran to questioning and later handed him over to police. However, no incriminating documents were recovered from his possession.
Imran, however, seems to have crossed into the Indian side inadvertently.
Meanwhile, a young girl Shamim Akhter, 18, daughter of Mohammad Sadiq and wife of Mohammad Younis, a resident of Noorkot, Poonch, who had inadvertently crossed over to Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) on August 24 from the Line of Control (LoC) was today handed over to the Indian troops by Pakistan army through cross-LoC point of Chakan-Da-Bagh in Poonch district.
Pakistan army returned the girl after Indian side confirmed her identity through hotline contact. After questioning, Army handed over the girl to police for handing her over to her family members.
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