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| No terror activity can take place without Pak help: Army | | | Et Report
SRINAGAR, Oct 8 : Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh today sought to reject the perception that the Keran incident was on the pattern of Kargil intrusion of 1999, saying it was just an infiltration bid by terrorists but suggested the complicity of Pakistan Army in the episode.He insisted that terrorists were not occupying any higher ground but sitting in a "nallah" (rivulet) near the Line of Control in Kashmir valley."It was a desperate infiltration bid, which has been foiled," Gen Singh told reporters here on the sidelines of the Air Force Day parade.He was asked about the incident in Keran in Kashmir where the Army was engaged for the last 15 days with a group of 35-40 militants about 300-400 metres inside Indian territory having a supply-line to Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir, an incident which reminded about the Kargil intrusion of 1999 when Indian posts were occupied."A large number of (TV) channels have talked about this being an intrusion. It is not. If this was intrusion, the adversary would go and occupy dominating ground which is defensible," he said.Seeking to downplay the incident, he said, "In this case, they were sitting in a nallah. Which adversary is going to dominate an area by sitting in the nallah?"At the same time, he suggested the complicity of Pakistan Army."On the LoC, we are in eyeball-to-eyeball situation. It is impossible for the terrorists to do any activity without Pakistan Army's knowledge. There is no way that they can operate there without Pakistan Army... I am clear that no terror activity can take place along the LoC without Pakistan Army support," he told Times Now.Asked about evidence in this regard, the Army Chief said the terrorists were provided cover fire to infiltrate in Keran from Pakistani posts. The Army Chief said that seven of the terrorists involved in the Keran sector had apparently pulled out from there and tried to infiltrate from other areas into Kashmir valley but were gunned down by the security forces.IAF Chief NAK Browne was also asked by reporters whether the Keran incident reminded him of the Kargil intrusion."Instead of saying that this is Kargil-type situation, nobody is coming or nobody is occupying anything. Be rest assured. The Army jawans are well trained and have adequate fire power," he replied."Because of the terrain and the situation there we do not want to expose our boys. The good part is that we have not lost any of our boys," Browne said.Asked why the Army troops have not been able to recapture the positions held by the Pakistanis, he said, "Let us not hype the situation. There is a word called 'savlanuth' in Hebrew. The meaning of that word is patience."Massive infiltration bid by terrorists backed by suspected Pakistani special forces, the biggest after the 1999 Kargil fiasco, was foiled by the Indian army which today called off its 15-day-long major operation in Keran sector along the LoC in Kashmir.The Army has been maintaining that it has been on a concerted search operation in Keran sector for the last 15 days after it foiled a major infiltration attempt by terrorists backed by suspected Pakistan special forces last month.Lt Gen Chachra, who arrived in the Valley on a four-day visit on Saturday, said there was attempt to infiltrate at multiple points in the Keran sector.He said eight terrorists have been killed and 59 weapons including 18 AK rifles and war-like stores captured. The 30-40 infiltrating militants were well equipped carrying supplies that would have lasted them 20 to 30 days, Lt Gen Chachra said."We have recovered signal, communication equipments, night vision devices, rations that would have sustained them for almost 20 to 30 days," he said."There were 30 to 40 militants in the infiltrating column at Shaalbhati village in Keran sector. We carried out a number of searches in that area and adjacent areas. We have found eight bodies," he said.Replying to a question on rest of the militants, he said, "(Bodies of) some of them might have been dragged back. Some of them were used in other subsequent operations in neighbouring areas."The Army commander said infiltration attempts from across the Line of Control (LoC) will continue till the winter sets in."The infiltration bids will continue till winter sets in. More such attempts will be made. We had an infiltration bid in a neighbouring area last night," he said.He said the desperation among the militants to infiltrate into Kashmir was due to the dwindling number of ultras in the Valley. "This is the time when they can reinforce their numbers," he said.Lt Gen Chachra said, "Sanctity of the LoC is well maintained (by the Indian side). This is our charter, this is the mandate given to us. The sanctity of the LoC can never be trampled." |
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