Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 22

Director General of Military Operations Lt Gen Ranbir Singh today told his Pakistan counterpart Maj Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza to stop his troops from firing across the border or else face retaliation.The DGMOs spoke over the hotline a day after three Indian soldiers were killed and the body of one of them mutilated by terrorists infiltrating from Pakistan. “On Pakistan’s request for an unscheduled hotline interaction, Indian DGMO Lt Gen Ranbir Singh spoke to his counterpart this evening,” an Army statement said.“If any ceasefire violations were initiated by Pakistan troops or any infiltration attempts were made by terrorists from the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) or territory under its control, it would invite an appropriate response by the Indian Army,” Army spokesperson Colonel Rohan Anand said citing the DGMO.Lt Gen Singh told his counterpart “to exercise strict control on their troops to refrain from any nefarious activities. This would lead to return of normalcy along Line of Control”.He further raised the issue of infiltration attempts by terrorists from the Pakistan side into Jammu and Kashmir and the unethical act of terrorists mutilating bodies of Indian soldiers along the LoC under cover fire by Pakistan.The Pakistan DGMO informed Lt Gen Singh of civilian casualties allegedly caused by Indian firing along the LoC. Lt Gen Singh expressed grief but said only those locations from where Pakistan had violated ceasefire had been targeted by the Indian troops.The Indian DGMO also expressed concerns on civilian and military casualties caused by unprovoked Pakistan firing.The weekly telephonic talk over the hotline is usually conducted by Colonel-level officers.