Indian Army Chief says Pakistani Army behind LoC infiltrations

mangaloretoday.com

New Delhi, Oct 8: Even as the Keran operations got over on October 8, almost 15 days after a large group of terrorists tried to cross the Line of Control and infiltrate into India, the Army Chief General Bikram Singh blamed Pakistani Army of being behind the attempts by the terrorists to enter India.

General Bikram Singh said that it is not possible for infiltrators to operate without Pakistan Army’s backing in the rough and inhospitable terrain. The Army Chief maintained that Keran operation was not an intrusion but an infiltration attempt.

The Generel elaborated that in an intrusion the adversary tried to hold on to a defendable feature like a high ground but at Shala Batu the terrorists were hiding in a nullah (rivulet) which cannot be defended.

 

"Every infiltration bid has the support of Pakistan Army. There is every possibility that there will be attempts to carry on further infiltration. These are localised operations, as this operation had more terrorists involved," said General Bikram Singh in an exclusive interview with IBN18 Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai

On the preparations of the Army to fight back such intrusions, General Singh said that his soldiers and officers are well prepared. "Deployment and the situation is dynamic," he said.

"The entire area has thick growth, nullahs which help terrorists to hide. Our team has been very deliberate with the operations. The last firing took place 2 days back," he added. The Indian Army on Tuesday called off the 15-day long Keran operation, saying the area has been cleared of the infiltrators backed by Pakistan. Early in the day, Northern Command Chief Lt General Sanjeev Chachra also blamed that the Pakistan Army for pushing through the infiltrators and maintained that his forces are on high alert and will continue to ensure that the sanctity of the LoC is maintained.

He also said that no Indian posts were occupied by infiltrators. While the search operation has been called off, Lt General Chachra said the anti-infiltration operations will continue. While he did not give the number of terrorists who tried to enter into the Indian territory, Lt General Chachra said that while some infiltrators in the Keran sector have been eliminated, other bids have been foiled. The Army said eight bodies have been recovered.

"The last contact was established four to five days ago. Eight bodies have been recovered," Lt General Chachra said. The Army had been battling an estimated 30 to 40 terrorists in the Shala Batu village in the Keran sector for the past 15 days. The Army had earlier released aerial pictures of the terrorists killed at the Line of Control during the operation. It also made a massive recovery of arms and ammunition from the infiltrators.