Army ready to deal with any Indian misadventure: DGMO

Briefs NA panel on national security regarding Indian violations along LoC

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Army’s Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Major General Nauman Zakaria, in a special briefing to the National Assembly’s (NA) parliamentary committee on national security, has said that the armed forces were equipped to deal with any unusual situation arising out of Indian misadventure.

He said that soldiers at the border have been alerted and directed to effectively respond to any aggression by the state’s enemy.

NA Speaker Asad Qaiser presided over the three-hour long briefing held at the Parliament House on Monday in which the opposition submitted its recommendations to the parliamentary committee.

According to sources, the DGMO and foreign ministry briefed the NA committee over the situation in Indian-Occupied Kashmir (IOK) and apprised the members of the unprovoked ceasefire violations by Indian forces along the Line of Control (LoC).

The committee was assured that the country’s armed forces were fully prepared to respond to any aggressive action from the Indian side. The forces are on alert and have been directed to effectively respond to any attempts of aggression, Gen Zakaria was quoted as saying.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, while talking to media after the session, said that Pakistan was in contact with various countries to take them into confidence regarding the situation in the occupied part of Kashmir.

He said India’s unilateral action in IOK, including the decision to strip the occupied territory of its semi-autonomous status and impose a curfew, had been criticised globally and in the UN Security Council. “Even the opposition acknowledged that the UNSC session taking up the Kashmir issue was a victory for us on the diplomatic front,” said Qureshi.

He said that not only was Pakistan’s stance well-received at the Security Council, but the unconstitutional measure taken by India had backfired with its own citizens up in arms against Delhi’s excesses.

According to the foreign minister, former foreign secretary Tehmina Janjua – on the instructions of the prime minister - would leave for Geneva on Tuesday (today), where she would approach the Human Rights Council of the United Nations to raise the issue of rights violations in occupied Kashmir.

Senator Sirajul Haq, who also attended the session, told the media afterwards that the committee members had agreed that the ball was now in the Pakistan government’s court.

“India has violated the Simla agreement, and Pakistani armed forces and the government have multiple options to their disposal,” he said, adding that preparation for war was one way to prevent war.

While calling national solidarity the key for any such strategy, he also lashed out at the government over actions that he said were detrimental to it.

In addition to foreign minister and the DGMO, the committee’s session was also attended by the governor of Gilgit-Baltistan as well as ministers of interior, defense and human rights.