New Delhi (Gurpreet Singh): India on Saturday summoned the Chargé d’Affaires of the High Commission of Pakistan in New Delhi to lodge a vehement protest against what it termed the continued facilitation of illicit cross-border infiltration from Pakistani territory. The Ministry of External Affairs firmly dismissed Islamabad’s assertions that two unarmed civilians were gunned down by Indian border forces on Friday, maintaining that the deceased posed an imminent security risk along the international boundary in Punjab’s Tarn Taran sector.
The diplomatic standoff follows an incident where Border Security Force personnel engaged suspects advancing toward the border barrier. According to the external affairs ministry, three individuals entered Indian territory and persistently marched forward despite verbal warnings to retreat across the border. Indian officials stated that the confrontation reflects a broader and recurring pattern of armed narcotics cartels attempting to penetrate Indian soil, urging Pakistani authorities to probe the complicity of their own frontier forces in cross-border smuggling networks.
Local law enforcement authorities in Punjab provided additional context regarding the encounter. Tarn Taran Deputy Superintendent of Police Atul Soni reported that after three suspects were detected advancing, one turned back toward Pakistan while the other two pressed on toward the fence, allegedly taunting sentries and defying repeated directives to stand down before lethal force was applied.
The action by New Delhi came shortly after Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned the Indian Chargé d’Affaires in Islamabad to register its own diplomatic protest over the deaths in the adjacent Bedian sector. Pakistani authorities identified the deceased as Azmat Rasool and Mohsin Jutt from the border village of Ladhar near Kasur, asserting that they were unarmed non-combatants who were fired upon disproportionately without attempting to breach the boundary fence. Islamabad demanded a transparent investigation and adherence to established bilateral border operating procedures.
