NEW DELHI: Rejecting allegations of ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) and Working Boundry (WB) levelled by Islamabad, Indian Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj has said that India only opens fire in response to ‘incursion’ by Pakistan.
Foreign Office (FO) Spokesman Mohammad Faisal confirmed receiving a letter by India’s External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Saturday, written in response to a protest letter penned by Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif last month.
Asif had last month asked India to discontinue ceasefire violations along the LoC and WB. In his letter, the foreign minister had called for political intervention for de-escalating tensions on the LoC which have resulted in numerous casualties.
His contention was that since the agreed mechanisms of DGMOs’ (director generals of military operations) hotline and border meetings were not working, the situation warranted a political initiative for restoring peace along the LoC and WB.
Pakistan has asked India several times to allow UNMOGIP monitor the border; however, India never allowed full access to its side of the fence to the international observers, said the FO spokesperson.
On Saturday, Faisal alleged that the Indian side had once again shown a stubborn response. “India only opens fire in response to the incursion,” Swaraj wrote in the letter.
India has breached the ceasefire agreement on more than 1,300 occasions since the start of this year, he said, adding that 52 civilians have lost their lives, while 175 have been injured. The toll of violations has reached a top in last one and half decades, he added.