India on Wednesday raised the pitch of its protests against the beheading of one of its jawans on the Line of Control (LOC) by accusing Pakistan of violating the rules of engagement for civilized, professional armies.
Top army sources told Mail Today there was anger in the army's rank and file which needed to be addressed. The immediate fallout of the gruesome incident was a strong political and diplomatic action, but a military response was also not ruled out.
Officially, though, the mandate was to ease tension. As the fragile Indo-Pak peace process hit the beheading roadblock, India took Pakistan to task with a stern message from foreign secretary Ranjan Mathai to Pakistan's high commissioner Salman Bashir.
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Army officers and Jawans pay tribute to the martyred soldiers in Rajouri on Wednesday
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Bashir was summoned to South Block with a strong demarche telling him that the incident was unacceptable. Mathai told Bashir that the incident was against all international norms and Pakistan must investigate the matter seriously and share the details with India. What followed was a veiled threat that such incidents should not recur or it will have an adverse impact on bilateral ties.
External affairs minister Salman Khurshid said: "We have conveyed that this is unacceptable, our intent has been conveyed very clearly. We cannot allow for escalation of an unwholesome incident."
Tougher language
Highly placed sources told Mail Today that some officials wanted tougher language used in the note verbale against Pakistan but they were told to calm down at the behest of the PMO, which didn't want to escalate the matter.
During his meeting with Bashir, Mathai jogged his memory and told him that barely a fortnight ago experts of both countries had met in New Delhi on December 27, 2012 to discuss conventional Confidence Building Measures, of which maintaining the sanctity of the LOC was one of the most important.
Sources said the defence minister and the national security adviser Shivshankar Menon briefed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the ceasefire violation and killing of two soldiers and a range of options were discussed.
Contrary to public posturing, the Indian Army and its troops on the frontline are seething at the barbaric and uncalled-for conduct of some Pakistani soldiers. Army sources said this kind of behaviour in this day and age will not be tolerated.
A section of the top army leadership wants a fitting response, but given the fragile relationship where the neighbours have gone to war several times in the past, mature heads have asked for calm.
The army's top brass, aware of the overriding sentiment, is preparing a systematic action plan which will be revealed in greater detail over time. Surveillance along the LoC has been heightened as part of this strategic imperative, meaning no quarter will be given if acts like these are repeated.
The Army may group special forces in key sectors where Pakistani troops used fog cover to carry out the incursion and subsequent killings.
The Indian Army suspects a larger play at work behind the brazen cross-border attack and the beheading of a soldier. Highly-placed sources confirmed to Mail Today that the army chief has instructed one of his subordinates to prepare an assessment report on this incident. The report will also consider the looming retirement of General Kayani, who is already on an extension.
It is felt that this attack was pre-planned and that the Pakistani Army is upping the ante because of General Kayani's reluctance to retire and its armed establishment coming under increased political scrutiny.
Objectionable
Sources said the Indian Army feel the attack wasn't perpetrated by Pakistani regulars but by the much-feared Pakistani Special Service Group (SSG), the counterpart of India's special forces.
Defence minister A.K Antony, who was briefed about the incident by army chief Gen. Bikram Singh, termed the killings "highly objectionable". A hotline between the directors general of military operations (DGMOs) of the Indian and Pakistani armies was then activated.
Indian DGMO Lt-Gen. Vinod Bhatia lodged a protest with his counterpart Lt-Gen. Ishfaq Nadim Ahmed, holding the Pakistani army directly responsible for the aggression.
The two officers spoke for over 12 minutes at 10am, during which Lt- Gen. Nadim Ahmed flatly denied the incident took place at all.
"India lodged a strong protest giving details of the incident. We also conveyed to him that this action has been carried out by regular troops of the Pakistan Army," said an Indian Army spokesperson, adding that "strong protest was also lodged against the mutilation of body (of one of the soldiers) which was a grave violation of the rules of engagement of any civilised, professional army".
The Pakistani DGMO neither asked for any proof nor proposed to investigate the issue as he refused to accept India's claim. The Indian side sought an investigation by Pakistan, but received no response. The voices from Islamabad, however, said the incident should be probed by the United Nations Military Observer Group based on either side of Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian Army rejected this outright.
'Ceasefire violation is a routine affair'
By Shiv Aroor in Mendhar
There is anger written all over the faces of the officers and jawans over the beheading and mutilation of two of their men here along the line of control.
An angry officer said the ceasefire agreement reached between the two countries in 2003 "was not worth the paper it was signed on" as the Pakistan Army routinely violates the agreement through firing and shelling.
Hours after Tuesday's incident in which Pakistani troops entered Indian territory and killed two Indian soldiers, intense firing continued till Wednesday morning. An officer said there was heavy fire all through the night.
Although the troops are ready for a tit-for-tat response, the message they got from New Delhi on Wednesday was not to escalate the tension as the matter was being taken up at the diplomatic level.
The Indian government's response has distressed the rank and file here. An officer said the ceasefire agreement was a joke as the Pakistan Army routinely flouts the agreement.
The officer revealed that there are 60 to 70 violations every year. He said flag meetings between the two armies along the Line of Control (LoC) and diplomatic talks served no purpose as nothing changes for the Pakistan Army.
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