The Indian Army today said a Pakistani militant belonging to Punjab province has surrendered in the Uri sector after his fellow militant was killed during an operation against a fresh infiltration attempt.
The Army said Pakistan Army’s connivance in abetting infiltration continues as it is difficult to attempt crossing the Line of Control without the active support of local Pakistan military commanders. Last week, the Army said, seven militants were killed in Kashmir and five of them were killed along the LoC.
The Army has been maintaining that there has been no ceasefire violation and the infiltration along the Line of Control since February this year after the armies of both sides agreed to uphold the 2003 ceasefire agreement.
On Feb 25, the DGsMO of India and Pakistan issued a joint statement that said, “In the interest of achieving mutually beneficial and sustainable peace along the borders, the two DGsMO agreed to address each other’s core issues and concerns which have the propensity to disturb the peace and lead to violence. Both sides agreed on strict observance of all agreements, understandings and cease firing along the Line of Control and all other sectors with effect from midnight February 24-25 Feb 2021.”
About the fresh infiltration bid, the Army six Pakistani militants entered along the Line of Control in the Uri sector on the night of September 18. The Army said taking advantage of darkness, uneven ground, bad weather and thick undergrowth, militants of the Lashkar-e-Toiba attempted to infiltrate. While four militants ran back towards the POK side of the LoC while the remaining two managed to infiltrate.
Subsequently, the army said, additional forces were inducted and multiple patrols were launched in the suspected areas and the getaway routes were blocked. On the night of September 25, 2021, contact was established by one such patrol with the militants about 800 meters inside the LoC. And on September 26, one Pakistani militant Atiq ur Rehman alias Qari Anas, 33, of Punjab, Pakistan, was killed and the second Pakistani militant, Ali Babar Patra appealed to surrender. The latter was captured alive and unharmed.
The army said the route taken by the militants to infiltrate was from Sawai Nala Camp to Hallan Shumali lunch pad to Jabri, leading into Salamabad Nala.
The Army said it was the same Salamabad nala through which militants infiltrated in 2016 with the help of the Pakistan Army and carried out the suicide attack on the Uri garrison. The Army said the surrendered militant has revealed that his group of six militants primarily belonged to Pakistani Punjab and he himself belonged to Dipalpur in district Okara.
The Army called him misguided and said he was lured to joining LeT due to poverty. He had undergone three weeks of preliminary training at the Garhi Habibullah Camp (KPK) in 2019 followed by refresher training in 2021, they further informed.
The army said the false and fake narratives of ‘Islam being in danger’ and perceived killing including the alleged atrocities being committed against the Muslims in Kashmir was the main theme of indoctrination during the training. The army said his appeal for surrender, after his mate was killed, highlights that he was not convinced about the 'Jihad narrative.'
Kashmir Valley is returning to peace, said the army, a fact that was not sitting well with Pakistan and its proxies. The army said the infiltration bids indicate Pakistan’s desperate attempts to sustain cross border terrorism and bring in weapons to orchestrate violent incidents in the valley.
