India Rejects Pakistan’s Allegations Over Karachi Rangers Attack

India on Sunday dismissed Pakistan’s allegations linking it to the militant attack on a Sindh Rangers compound in Karachi and urged Islamabad to address militancy within its own territory.

Responding to media queries, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India had taken note of the accusations emerging from Pakistan following the attack.

"We have seen Pakistani reports making baseless allegations against India regarding the recent incident in Karachi. We categorically reject them," Jaiswal said.

He further criticised Pakistan’s approach to militancy, saying: "Instead of pointing fingers at others, Pakistan would do better to look inwards, take credible action against the terror infrastructure on its territory and rid itself of its proclivity to rely on terrorism as an instrument of state policy."

India’s response came after Pakistani authorities said security forces had repelled an assault on the Sindh Rangers’ Bhittai Wing headquarters in Karachi’s Gulistan-e-Jauhar area on Saturday night. Officials said six militants were killed and one attacker was captured alive following a nearly 90-minute operation involving Rangers personnel, Special Security Unit commandos and the Anti-Terrorist Force. Four Rangers personnel were also killed.

Responsibility for the attack was claimed by Jamaat-ul-Ahrar, a breakaway faction of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Pakistan’s military later described the group as an Indian proxy but did not present evidence supporting the allegation, The Associated Press reported.

Initial investigations indicated that the attackers rammed a vehicle through the compound’s main gate before entering and launching the assault with hand grenades and automatic weapons, triggering multiple explosions. Authorities sealed off the area as exchanges of gunfire continued and residents were advised to remain indoors.

Sindh Inspector General of Police Javed Alam Odho said preliminary findings showed the militants had entered the compound using a vehicle and that Rangers personnel responded immediately. He added that an explosion was heard at the beginning of the attack, though its exact cause was not immediately clear, PTI reported.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah directed provincial authorities to submit a detailed report on the incident, while Rescue 1122 teams were deployed after reports of an explosion near Gulistan-e-Jauhar Block 5.

The attack marked Karachi’s first major militant strike since October 2024, when two Chinese engineers were killed in a suicide bombing near Karachi airport claimed by the banned Balochistan Liberation Army. It also comes amid heightened tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan, with Islamabad repeatedly accusing the Afghan Taliban of providing sanctuary to TTP militants operating across the border.