ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Pakistan has called upon India for an immediate investigation into killing of two soldiers of Punjab Rangers in Zafarwal Sector and bringing the perpetrators to justice.
On December 31, 2014, the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) troops invited the personnel of Punjab Rangers for a flag meeting. However, the unsuspecting soldiers were greeted with a volley of unprovoked fire, causing severe injuries to two soldiers who later died.
In a statement on Friday, the Foreign Office said that the prime minister’s adviser on national security and foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz addressed a letter to the Indian minister of external affairs Shushma Swaraj to lodge protest on the killing of two soldiers of the Punjab Rangers in Zafarwal Sector.
In the letter which was handed over to the Indian high commissioner by the foreign secretary Aizaz Chaudhry, the adviser condemned the action of the BSF and lodged Pakistan’s strong protest with the Indian government, calling for an immediate investigation into the incident and bringing the perpetrators to account.
“The letter underlines that the regrettable ambush of the soldiers would undermine mechanisms established by the two countries to ensure peace and tranquility along the Line of Control (LoC) and the Working Boundary (WB),” the Foreign Office said.
The foreign secretary while expressing concern at the way the incident had taken place underlined that the incident was not only in contravention to the rules of engagement but also amounted to breach of trust of Pakistani soldiers in these mechanisms.
Chaudhry also impressed upon the Indian envoy that it was not in Pakistan’s interest to ratchet up tension on the LoC and WB, since our law enforcement agencies and armed forces were fully engaged in combating terrorism and militancy across the country.
“The Indian insinuations that Pakistan supported infiltration attempts were, therefore, far removed from reality,” the foreign secretary remarked.
The Indian envoy was told that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif as well as the entire nation took serious notice of the condemnable Indian aggression and expressed their shock and anger at the killing of the soldiers in cold blood.
Keeping in view the seriousness of the incident, the foreign secretary also briefed the Heads of the Missions of P-5 countries and the EU in Islamabad and emphasised the importance of maintaining ceasefire on the LoC and WB.
The foreign secretary stressed the urgency of the international community playing its role in counselling India to refrain from actions that threaten peace and stability in the region.
