India on Friday rejected Pakistan’s allegations over the collision between an Indian Navy warship and a Pakistani naval vessel in the North Arabian Sea, calling Islamabad’s response “usual prevarication”.
The collision involving Indian Navy’s INS Kolkata and Pakistan Navy’s PNS Hunain took place on Tuesday evening, with both sides subsequently lodging protests over the incident.
India had summoned Pakistan’s chargé d’affaires on Wednesday and protested against “unacceptable and unprofessional” conduct of the Pakistani vessel.
Pakistan, in response, alleged that the Indian warship had carried out a “highly provocative and unacceptable action” in its Exclusive Economic Zone during the country’s SEASPARK-26 naval exercise.
“We have seen Pakistan's response to the protest we had lodged. It is the usual prevarication that we expected. We reject the allegations and insinuations contained therein,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at his weekly media briefing.
According to the Indian account, INS Kolkata was on a routine surveillance mission when PNS Hunain approached it and carried out a dangerous overtaking manoeuvre, resulting in the collision.
Jaiswal said the manoeuvre by PNS Hunain violated Article 10 of the 1991 India-Pakistan agreement on advance notice of military exercises, manoeuvres and troop movements, which requires naval units at sea to maintain a distance of at least three nautical miles.
He also said the Pakistani vessel violated the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.
India has advised Pakistan to ensure that its military units exercise due care and adhere to relevant bilateral agreements to prevent a recurrence of such incidents, Jaiswal said.
He added that INS Kolkata did not suffer any major damage and remains deployed at sea. Pakistani sources, meanwhile, have said PNS Hunain was damaged and returned to harbour for repairs.
(With inputs from PTI)