Indian Defence Minister Nirmala Sitaraman on Tuesday said that India had honoured its 2003 ceasefire agreement with Pakistan however the Army reserves the right to retaliate to an unprovoked attack.
During a press conference, she also reiterated the government’s position that talks and terrorism cannot go hand-in-hand.
“When it is an unprovoked attack, the Army is given the right to retaliate. We honour the ceasefire but of course, a margin is given to us when there is an unprovoked attack,” Sitaraman said. “It’s our business to guard the border and we won’t stop if we’re provoked. We shall be alert that no unprovoked attack goes without us responding. It’s our duty to keep India safe.”
Sitharaman also quelled reports of a shortage of defence ammunition. Targeting the previous government under Manmohan Singh, she said there was a shortage of funds under UPA which was not the case anymore. She also denied allegations of a scam in the Rafael deal, calling them “baseless”.
On Tuesday, just hours after a flag meeting, the armies of India and Pakistan exchanged fire in Akhnoor Sector.
Police said around 1 a.m. the Pakistan Rangers fired two to three mortars in the Akhnoor sector of the IB. However the BSF didn’t retaliate. “Border Security Force (BSF) troopers did not retaliate. No casualty or damage was caused in the Pakistani shelling,” a police officer said.
Recently, India and Pakistan decided to go back to the 2003 Ceasefire Pact and follow it in letter and spirit. However, since then, a number of times the pact has been violated.
The decision to implement bilateral ceasefire was welcomed by the United States as well as China.
