Pakistan on Thursday summoned the Indian Deputy High Commissioner J P Singh over an alleged ceasefire violation along the Line of Control (LoC) which killed a civilian.
Singh was summoned by the Director General (SA & SAARC) Dr Mohammad Faisal, who is also spokesperson, for the alleged ceasefire violation that took place on October 31 in the Leepcha sector, said the the Foreign Office.
The firing killed an 18-year old civilian in Bijildar village, said Faisal.
"This unprecedented escalation in ceasefire violations by India is continuing from the year 2017 when the Indian forces committed 1970 ceasefire violations," he said.
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He urged the Indian side to respect the 2003 ceasefire arrangement, investigate it and other incidents of ceasefire violations, instruct the Indian forces to respect the ceasefire, in letter and spirit and maintain peace on the LoC and the working boundary.
He also said that the Indian side should permit United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) to play its mandated role as per the UN Security Council resolutions.
However, India has maintained that UNMOGIP has outlived its utility and is irrelevant after the Simla Agreement and the consequent establishment of the LoC.
Earlier, former Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha led committee has come up with a report after visiting areas along the Line of Control (LoC) and other regions of the restive state. It says villagers living along the LoC and the IB in Jammu and Kashmir have become migrants in their country.
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The cease-fire understanding reached between the two countries in 2003 was violated with impunity with small arms fire giving way to heavy mortar and finally, even artillery.
The unusual escalation resulted in a high death toll – the casualties in January 2018 alone equalled the figure for the entire 2017. And 2017 itself was an exceptional year for cease-fire violations, as they represented a six-fold increase compared to 2015.
(With inputs from PTI)
