Indian Army Denies Reports Of Surgical Strike In Pakistan, Says Infiltration Bid Along LoC 'Beaten Back'

The Indian Army has denied media reports of a surgical strike in Pakistan but said an infiltration bid along the LoC was thwarted.

The Indian Army Tuesday denied a media report of conducting a surgical strike in Pakistan but confirmed that an infiltration bid by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district in Balakote sector was “beaten back”.

During the encounter, two terrorists, who were trying to cross the LoC onto the Indian side, were shot at by the Indian Army and “they fell on the ground but it was at a distance … The area was cordoned off and fully sanitised afterwards,” said Army sources.

According to the sources, it is confirmed that the terrorists were severely hit and blood trails could be traced that had markings leading from the Indian side of the LoC towards Pakistan’s side. The terrorists could infiltrate the border because of poor visibility and they “made use of inclement weather, dense fog, thick foliage, and undulating ground in Hamirpur area of Balakote Sector."

Both terrorists were gunned down just as they entered the Indian side of the LoC, according to the Army, while it was able to recover an AK-47 rifle, two magazines, 30 rounds of ammunition, two hand grenades and medicine strips having Pakistan imprints on them. However, it could not be ascertained if the terrorists were killed.

“Intelligence inputs received from multiple intelligence agencies and Jammu and Kashmir Police revealed the presence of terrorists waiting to cross the LC from the Balakote Sector. Based on these inputs, its own surveillance grid was placed on heightened alert and multiple ambushes were sited at suitable locations," the Army had said on Monday.

Earlier, a regional newspaper report claimed that the Indian Army carried out another surgical strike in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and destroyed four terrorist launch pads, following this the Army issued a statement denying the report.

In September 2016, the Indian Army conducted a surgical strike in PoK, destroying several terror launch pads, in response to an attack by Pakistani terrorists on an army base in Kashmir’s Uri on September 18 in which 19 soldiers were killed.