Indian Army says it will decide ‘time and place to attack.’
The government of India has decided to go ahead with action to isolate Pakistan diplomatically in all international forums by presenting the evidence showing the involvement of Pakistan in the attack on an army camp in Uri, Jammu and Kashmir, that killed 18 soldiers.
India has collected evidence from the spot that connects Pakistan’s involvement in the attack. The Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) Lt. Gen. Ranbir Singh will hand over the evidence to Pakistan military officials.
The Indian Army, meanwhile, on Monday, said that it will decide the time and place to respond to the attack.
“We have the desired capability to respond to such blatant acts of aggression and violence as deemed appropriate by us. We reserve the right to respond to any act of the adversary at a time and place of own choosing,” said Lt General Ranbir Singh.
“The Indian Army has displayed considerable restraint while handling the terrorist situation both along the Line of Control and in hinterland,” he added.
Singh said that the infiltration attempts by terrorists have shown a marked increase in comparison to the past 3-4 years. In 2016, there have been 17 infiltration bids eliminated by the Indian Army along the Line of Control. Of a total of 110 terrorists eliminated in J&K, 31 have been killed while they were attempting to cross the Line of Control.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Monday to analyze the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and to decide the future course of action to be followed in the matter.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Defence Minster Manohar Parrikar, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Army Chief Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag and other senior officials in the Prime Minister’s Office, Defense Ministry and the Home Ministry attended the meeting.
According to a report in The Indian Express, Modi has asked the agencies to collect all evidence to prove Pakistan’s involvement in the attack which could be effectively used in international forums to isolate Pakistan. However, the common opinion shared in the meeting was not to take any aggressive action based on the sentiments prevailing across the nation without considering the short and long term implications.
Modi met President Pranab Mukherjee in the backdrop of the attack and briefed him about the developments. Home Minister Rajnath Singh also reviewed the situation along the Line of Control (LoC) with higher officials in the ministry.
Though Pakistan has denied its involvement in Uri terror attack, Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju said that India was not concerned about Pakistan’s reaction. “Everything is in front of the people. We must not give much attention to Pakistan’s reaction. We will take our steps carefully,” Rijiju said.
The Army operations have been called off after conducting a detailed search of the area in and around the military complex at Uri. Four terrorists infiltrated into the base camp were killed by the army.
Four AK 47 rifles, four Under Barrel Grenade Launchers, 39 Under Barrel Grenade Launcher grenades, five hand grenades, two radio sets, two GPSs, two Map Sheets, two Matrix Sheets, one Mobile Phone and a large number of food and medicine packets having Pakistani markings, have been recovered from Uri.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Army chief Gen Raheel Sharif, on Monday, held a meeting of higher military officials in the wake of India’s accusations against Pakistan.
“Taking note of a hostile narrative being propagated by India, COAS (Gen Sharif) said that we are fully cognizant and closely watching the latest happenings in the region and their impact on the security of Pakistan,” said a military statement.
“Armed forces of Pakistan are fully prepared to respond to entire spectrum of direct and indirect threat,” it added.