Pakistan Army spokesman Maj Gen Asif Ghafoor today said the armed forces are fully prepared to meet any eventuality and rejected claims that the Indian commandos selectively targeted a post across the Line of Control killing three Pakistani soldiers in a tit-for-tat action.
It rejected India’s claims that the Indian Army commandos crossed the Line of Control in Poonch sector of Jammu and Kashmir and smashed a Pakistani post.
“The false claims by India about the alleged cross LoC adventures are a figment of their imagination and counterproductive for peace and tranquillity on the LoC,” it said.
Addressing the media in Rawalpindi, Maj Gen Ghafoor also termed last year’s “surgical strike” by India across LoC as “false propaganda”. “You cannot lure us into such unprofessional undertakings.”
The Indian Army sources in New Delhi earlier this week said a “small group” of ‘Ghatak’ commandos carried out a tactical level selective targeting of the Pakistani post around 200-300 meters across the LoC in which three Pakistani soldiers were killed and one was injured.
The operation is seen as avenging the killing of four Indian Army personnel by a Border Action Team of the Pakistan Army in Keri sector Rajouri district last week.
“India always looks to reduce the relevance of any gestures that Pakistan makes. However, every effort that anti-Pakistan elements make, we will counter,” he said.
He also accused India of a record number of ceasefire violation in 2017, which he claimed was being done to divert the attention of Pakistan from fighting terrorism on its western border.
Ghafoor said Pakistan had fought against militants without any discrimination and destroyed their infrastructure.
“No organized infrastructure of any banned organization is present in Pakistan. There are no facilitators [of terrorist groups] in Pakistan and we have gone a long way towards supporting peace in the region,” he said.
The spokesman also rejected US Vice President Mike Pence’s remarks in Afghanistan wherein he had said that the US had put Pakistan on notice. “What kind of friends are we that we are being given notices,” Ghafoor said.
When asked about former military ruler Pervez Musharraf’s recent statements regarding “rogue elements” being responsible for Benazir Bhutto’s death, he said: “I am the spokesperson for the sitting army chief and the media should ask Musharraf to defend his own statements. As of now, I can say that there are no rogue elements within the Pakistan Army.”