New Delhi August 6;Islamabad rejected allegations that its troops were involved in the killing of five Indian soldiers on the Line of Control (LoC) but India summoned Pakistan Deputy High Commissioner Mansoor Ahmed Khan and lodged a strong protest over the bloodletting.
A senior South Bock official summoned Mr. Khan and delivered a strong message on the killings that closely followed the attempt to attack the Indian consulate in Afghanistan’s Jalalabad city.
In a detailed statement, Pakistan rejects the allegations carried by “some sections of the Indian media” of an attack across the LoC in the Poonch sector in which five Indian soldiers “were claimed to have been killed.”
The Pakistan Foreign Office said military authorities have confirmed that there had been no exchange of fire that could have resulted in such an incident and reiterated its commitment to the ceasefire agreement of 2003 “which is an important Confidence Building Measure and should be respected in letter and spirit.”
The statement asked both sides to abide by and strengthen the existing military mechanisms to ensure that “such ill-founded reports that have the potential of vitiating the atmosphere are avoided.”
Islamabad said it was committed to a constructive, sustained and result-oriented process of engagement with India and looked forward to an early resumption of the dialogue process. “It is important that both sides make serious efforts in maintaining the positive atmosphere and avoid negative propaganda,” it counselled.
