Naib Subedar Paramjeet Singh From Tarn Taran in Punjab and (R) BSF Head Constable Prem Sagar From Deoria in Uttar Pradesh

Arteev Sharma

Tribune News Service

Jammu/Poonch, May 1

A day after the Pakistan army chief visited the Line of Control (LoC), Pakistan’s Border Action Team (BAT) today killed two Indian soldiers and mutilated their bodies in the Krishna Ghati (KG) sector of Poonch district.In retaliation, Indian troops reportedly damaged the Pimple, Roza and Buttal posts on the other side of the LoC, killing a number of Pakistani soldiers, sources said.Pakistani troops violated ceasefire by firing rockets at two forward defence location (FDL) posts — Kripan-I and Kripan-II — along the LoC in Poonch. The BAT, comprising special forces, simultaneously intruded about half-a-kilometre inside the Indian territory and ambushed a patrol of about half-a-dozen jawans.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)An Army junior commissioned officer (JCO) and a Border Security Force head constable were killed, while another soldier was injured. The Pakistani forces mutilated the bodies of the two soldiers, before escaping under cover fire by their army. The deceased have been identified as Head Constable Prem Sagar (from Deoria in Uttar Pradesh) and Naib Subedar Paramjeet Singh (from Tarn Taran in Punjab).In Delhi, Defence Minister Arun Jaitley said the mutilation of bodies was “reprehensible” and an “extreme form of barbarism”. He said the armed forces would react appropriately to the “inhuman act” and their “sacrifice will not go in vain”.An official statement of Udhampur-based Northern Command said: “In an unsoldierly act by the Pakistan army, the bodies of two of our soldiers in the patrol were mutilated. Such a despicable act of the Pakistan army will be appropriately responded to.”The ceasefire violation took place around 8.25 am when Pakistani troops deployed at Pakistan FDL Pimple, manned by 647 Mujahid Battalion, fired four rounds of rocket-propelled grenades and three to four bursts using automatic weapons towards Indian FDL Kripan-I manned by 200th Battalion of the BSF.“Around 8.40 am, Indian troops deployed at FDL Kripan-I also fired with automatic weapons towards Pak FDL Pimple. Four jawans, including Head Constable Prem Sagar, Constable Rajender Kumar, both of 200 Battalion, and Naib Subedar Paramjeet Singh of 22 Sikh Regiment suffered splinter injuries. The identity of another trooper, who received minor injuries, is yet to be revealed,” a source said.Sagar and Singh later succumbed to their injuries.Sources said the BAT members attacked the patrol team 400 to 500 metres inside the Indian territory. “The geographical location of the area is very tough and the BAT action seems well-planned. Although the Indian troops were sitting at a higher altitude, the BAT members managed to intrude 500 metres inside the Indian territory and attack the patrol team. The Pakistan army used RPG to give cover fire to BAT members after they killed and mutilated soldiers’ bodies,” a source said.On Sunday, Pakistan army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa toured the areas along the LoC in the Haji Pir sector of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. He was briefed about the operational preparation of its army along the LoC.In March, Pakistani troops had violated the mutually- agreed truce along the LoC in Poonch and Rajouri sectors seven times. They violated the ceasefire in the Poonch sector on April 19 and also targeted Indian forward posts in the Noushera sector with mortars on April 8 and 17. The Pakistan army had resorted to firing in Poonch district on April 5, in Bhimbher Gali sector on April 4 and twice on April 3 in Balakote and (Digwar) Poonch sectors.BAT — A mix of special forces, terroristsPakistan’s Border Action Team is a group of special forces with highly trained terrorists from outfits such as Lashkar-e-Toiba specifically employed for trans-LoC action. Their action distance from LoC varies from 1 to 3 km. In Pakistan, the SSG (special services group) forms the core of BAT. Its primary task is to dominate the LoC by carrying out disruptive actions in form of surreptitious raids.Previous BAT attacks

• November 22, 2016: Three soldiers killed, while one soldier’s body mutilated near LoC in the Machhil sector of Kupwara district
• October 28, 2016: Terrorists, under cover fire by Pakistan army, cross LoC and kill a jawan and mutilate his body in Machhil sector
• January 8, 2013: Bodies of two soldiers, Lance Naik Hemraj and Lance Naik Sudhagar Singh, mutilated in Mankot sector of Poonch