Days after Home Minister Rajnath Singh assured the nation that his government would come up with a “permanent solution to end the (Kashmir) issue,” the Indian Army declared that it was conducting “punitive fire assaults” on Pakistani military outposts which provide covering fire to help infiltrators cross the Line of Control.
Asserting that the Army ‘proactively dominates’ the LoC, Army Spokesman and Additional Director General of Public Information Major General Ashok Narula said Tuesday that “Recent actions in Naushera have caused damage to Pakistan army posts.” The Pakistan Army provides covering fire to distract Indian forces and allow infiltrators to sneak in, and at times they have not even hesitated to target villages near the LoC, he said, adding that a video of the Indian strike had been released. Though he didn’t specify the time and date of the strike, Army sources say the Naushera attack, in which rocket launchers, anti-tank guided missiles, and recoilless guns were used to destroy Pakistani structures, took place on May 9. Pakistan of course denied the incident. General Narula also warned that “with the melting of ice and opening of passes, there's a risk of an increase in infiltration attempts. We want peace in Kashmir, and it's important that we improve counter-terrorist operations”.
All this is probably part of the new Indian policy to make infiltration and terrorist strikes ‘increasingly expensive’ for Pakistan. But instead of being cowed down, Pakistan seems to have ramped up its activities in Kashmir, with over 500 to 800 highly trained terrorists waiting at the launch pads across the LoC. Some intelligence agencies say these include members of Pakistan’s Border Action Teams, accused of killing and mutilating Indian soldiers earlier this month. One can only hope that there’s more to the home minister’s assurance on Kashmir than just retaliatory action along the border.