Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Pakistan on Saturday summoned the Indian Charg d’Affaires and lodged what it called a strong protest over the killing of two people by India’s Border Security Force a day earlier, saying they were civilians. The Pakistan Foreign Office said the two were unarmed and had inadvertently crossed the international border.
Indian officials, however, said BSF troops shot dead two suspected Pakistani intruders along the international border in Punjab’s Tarn Taran district on Friday. The incident took place around noon, and Pakistani officials rejected reports that the two were intruders.
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Tarn Taran Deputy Superintendent of Police (Bhikiwind) Atul Soni said three intruders were advancing towards the Indian side, but one later returned to Pakistan. The two others continued moving towards the Indian side despite warnings from BSF troops to turn back, he said. According to a BSF sentry, the two men were also provoking the troops and saying they wanted to enter Indian territory. The BSF then opened fire, killing the two men, Soni said, adding that senior BSF officers visited the spot. The identities of the two deceased were being ascertained, he said.
Punjab in northern India shares a 553-km border with Pakistan. Pakistani officials said the two men were civilians visiting the border who had inadvertently crossed the international border. In a statement, the Pakistan Foreign Office said the Indian Charge d’Affaires was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to “lodge Pakistan’s strong protest over the killing”. “The BSF personnel resorted to unprovoked lethal force against unarmed civilians. Such use of force was wholly unjustified and grossly disproportionate, resulting in the tragic loss of two precious lives,” it said.
The Foreign Office said the incident was a serious violation of fundamental human rights, including the right to life, and raised serious concerns about the protection of civilian life under international law. It called on the Indian side “to conduct an immediate, transparent and credible investigation” into the incident, take appropriate disciplinary and legal action against those found responsible, and formally communicate the findings and action taken to the Pakistani government.
The incident has led to sharply different accounts from the two sides, with Indian officials describing the dead as suspected intruders and Pakistan maintaining they were civilians, as Islamabad pressed for an investigation and formal action.
With PTI Inputs
– Ends
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
