ISLAMABAD, 20 January 2005 — Indian and Pakistani military commanders spoke by telephone hotline yesterday to calm tensions after mortars crashed into Indian-held Kashmir, endangering a 14-month cease-fire between the nuclear-armed neighbors.
Pakistan denied Indian allegations that its forces had fired mortars and violated the current cease-fire. “No one from Pakistan has fired and there is no cease-fire violation by Pakistan,” Pakistan’s military spokesman, Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan said.
“Explosions about 1500 meter distance across the Line of Control in Held Kashmir were heard on Tuesday at 7.15 p.m.”, he said. “Ten to 12 blasts were heard but we cannot say whether it was blasting, explosions or mortar fires”, Sultan said.
Pakistani troops have not violated the cease-fire, he said calling the Indian allegations utterly baseless.
Indian officials alleged on Tuesday that 15 mortar shells were fired into Indian-administered Kashmir from Pakistan-ruled Kashmir.
A spokesman of the Jammu police had alleged that the mortars came from across the Line of Control in the evening and landed in Durga Post area in the Poonch sector. “We are unclear the mortars were fired by the pro-freedom fighters or Pakistani troops,” the spokesman said.
Indian army officer Maj. Gen. D. Samanwar told Indian news channels the incident was tantamount to a cease-fire violation.
But yesterday morning, Indian tone had become more sober. Indian Army No. 2 Lt. Gen. Bhupinder Singh Thakur said: “We would like to use restraint.”
Poonch lies 245 km northwest of Jammu, winter capital of Muslim-majority Indian Kashmir, racked by a revolt against New Delhi’s rule.
“There’s going to be a series of discussions on this and I am sure with the kind of understanding that exists between the two armies, there will be a better understanding and restraint on both sides,” Thakur said.
“We hope the Pakistan government will consider this case with all seriousness,” he told reporters in New Delhi.
In other violence in Kashmir, police said eight militants died yesterday in separate clashes with Indian security forces. Two rebels died in southern Poonch, four were killed in Rajouri and two died in Anantnag. Suspected rebels also killed a civilian in Doda district.
Indian soldiers also killed five militants who were trying to sneak into Indian Kashmir from the Pakistani zone in Poonch on Tuesday.
Thakur said that, following the mortar incident, the Indian director general of military operations spoke to his Pakistani counterpart, “telling him all our concerns”.
“They have also heard of such blasts. They don’t know who fired them,” Thakur said, adding Pakistan had promised to investigate.
“We take it as a violation of the cease-fire,” said Thakur, noting, “This is the first time this caliber of weapons have been used.”
He said 60 mm and 82 mm mortars were fired in three salvoes, at 6.30 p.m., 7.25 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Thakur said the shells were “available” to the Pakistani Army, but the 82 mm caliber with a range of five km was also “available with the terrorists”.
India refers to the militants fighting for Kashmir’s independence or merger with Pakistan as “terrorists”.
Asked what it would take to provoke an Indian riposte, the deputy army chief said: “Nothing is quantified as a trigger point. We will basically take it on a case by case basis.”
India and Pakistan launched the cease-fire on Nov. 25, 2003, as part of a tentative peace process. For years before, they routinely exchanged artillery fire across the Line of Control, the de facto border separating their armies in Kashmir.
Col. R. K. Sen, a spokesman for the Indian Army’s Northern Command in Kashmir, said by telephone the border situation was peaceful yesterday. He said Indian forces were on alert but the army did not know what provoked the mortar fire. He said the Indian side had not retaliated “because we did not want the peace process under way to be jeopardized.”
