Mutilation of soldiers:

Mutilation of soldiers: Indian Army given free hand to avenge Pakistan’s barbaric act, says report

New Delhi, May 2: Government on Monday said that the Indian Army has been given free hand in responding to what is termed as ‘cowardly and barbaric act’ when a Pakistani Border Action Team (BAT) sneaked into Indian territory under cover of heavy shelling in the Krishna Ghati sector in Poonch district and mutilated two Indian soldiers on Monday. Following the barbaric act, defence minister Arun Jaitley held that the sacrifice of the two soldiers would not go in vain and also assured that an “appropriate action” would be taken by the armed forces in response to the mutilation. “This is a reprehensible and an inhuman act by our neighbour. Such acts don’t take place even during war, let alone peace. Bodies of soldiers being mutilated is an extreme form of barbarism,” said Jaitley.

“The Indian government strongly condemns this act and the whole country has full confidence and faith in our armed forces, which will react appropriately to this inhuman act. The sacrifice of these soldiers will not go in vain,” he added.

The Indian Army promised “appropriate” retribution for the “despicable act”. General Bipin Rawat was also in the Kashmir Valley on Monday to review the operational situation along the Line of Control (LoC). “While fire assaults are already under way in different sectors of the LoC, the retaliation for Pakistan army’s unsoldierly act in mutilating the bodies will be well-planned and executed at a time and place of our choosing,” said a senior officer, reported Times of India.

The mutilation of Naib Subedar Paramjit Singh of 22 Sikh Regiment and head constable Prem Sagar 200 BSF Battalion is the third such act since India’s conducted surgical strike against terror launchpads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) on September 29.

On Monday, May 1, Indian soldiers Prem Sagar and Naib Subedar Paramjeet Singh were mutilated in a cross-border operation launched by Pakistan’s Border Action Team (BAT), amid the ongoing ambush between the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) and Pakistani Rangers at the Line of Control (LoC) near Poonch sector. The “barbaric” mutilation came just 24 hours after Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa visited the LoC on Sunday, April 30.

“The shelling, in which over 45 rounds of RPG were fired at the two posts and the patrol, went on for over 30 minutes,” said an officer. “They managed to kill the two soldiers and mutilate their bodies before fleeing back in the well-coordinated operation. Another jawan, BSF constable Rajinder Singh, sustained splinter injuries on his left thigh and was evacuated to the Army hospital in Rajouri later,” said an officer, reported TOI.

The government officials have also reportedly said that the two Indian soldiers might just have walked into a death trap laid by the enemy. A senior officer told PTI, “It was a pre-planed operation by Pakistan army. They had pushed in the Border Action Team over 250 metres deep inside Indian territory and set up the ambush for a long period to carry out the attack. Their target was a patrol party of 7-8 members, which had come out of a post.”

The provocation, while worsening the India-Pakistan ties, also led the two armies to escalate their exchange of fire in several areas.

Article source:yahoo.com