New Delhi: India’s three services—the Army, the Navy and the Air Force—on Thursday sent out a stern message to Pakistan, saying it should not embark on any “misadventure”.
The armed forces, in a joint press briefing, said they would not hesitate to use any method of military offence should Pakistan breach India’s borders by use of military force or through terrorism, especially in the wake of the Pulwama attack, and the 35 cases of ceasefire violations over the last two days.
Additional troops have been deployed along the Line of Control and in Jammu and Kashmir, and the Indian Army has moved tanks and artillery into position. The forces were also ready to respond to the slightest provocation by Pakistan.
“Our ground-based weapons systems have been out on high alert along the Line of Control (LoC) and the International Border. We are fully prepared and in a heightened state of readiness to respond to Pakistan. The Indian Army will act against agencies, which harbour inimical designs against India,” Major General Surender Singh Mahal said at the joint briefing on Thursday.
Mahal, however, reiterated that India’s intention was to fight terrorism and “all their terror camps will be targeted by us”; besides, the Indian Army would not give up “until Pakistan keeps supporting it (terrorism)”.
The Army confirmed that during the air raid on Wednesday morning, Pakistan attempted to target a brigade headquarters and a battalion headquarters, besides other logistic installations in Jammu and Kashmir.
“There is no doubt they targeted our military installations and we did our task in preventing any damage swiftly,” said Air Vice Marshal R.G.K. Kapoor. “There is also fairly credible evidence that the terror camps (across the border) were targeted and damage was inflicted. Whatever we intended to destroy has been done. Now, Pakistan needs to stop embarking on any misadventure, else it shall be suitably responded to by us.”
According to the Army, Pakistan had also resorted to unprovoked ceasefire violations in Bhimber Gali, Nowshera and Krishna Ghati, which were “responded to by the Indian Army in a befitting manner”.
The Indian Air Force said it was “very happy” that Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman would be released on Friday.
Calling Pakistan’s bluff, it added that the MiG-21 Bison had indeed shot down a Pakistani F-16 in Jammu and Kashmir’s Rajouri sector, and put on record evidence of the air-to-air missile that the fighter jet was carrying.
A senior official familiar with the development said the Indian Navy had “made some adjustments from the western to the eastern coastal fronts”, and would act in any way possible to bolster the other two services in thwarting any attempt by Pakistan to destabilize security in India.
“The Indian Navy is deployed in a high state of readiness and remains poised on all three surfaces—on ground, sea and air to prevent any misadventure by Pakistan in the maritime domain. I can assure you of a swift response when needed. We stand as one with the Army and the Air Force to ensure safety of our citizens,” said Rear Admiral Dalbir Singh Gujral.
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