Terrorists kill jawan, mutilate body, Army vows 'appropriate response'

NEW DELHI: An Army jawan was killed in an encounter with terrorists near the Line of Control in Macchil sector of Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday evening. The terrorists mutilated the jawan's body, apparently beheading him, before fleeing back into Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir under the cover of firing provided by the Pakistan Army.
"One militant was also killed in the gun-battle.But the despicable act of mutilating the jawan's body reflects the barbarism pervading in official and unofficial organisations in Pakistan," said the Army spokesperson in Srinagar. “The terrorists managed to escape due to the covering fire provided to them from the Pakistan Army posts. The incident will be responded to appropriately ,” he added. The soldier was identified as Manjeet Singh of 17 Sikh Light Infantry.
Sources said the operation seemed to be the handiwork of a BAT (border action team), which typically consists of terrorists and Pakistan Army regulars, and is bound to further escalate tensions along the Line of Control and the international boundary in J&K.
A similar BAT action by Pakistan in the Mendhar sector of J&K in 2013, in which an Indian soldier was beheaded and another’s body mutiliated, had later been avenged by the Indian Army in “a befitting manner”. The then Army chief General Bikram Singh had said that the Indian force could not be expected to stick to rules if the neighbour was breaking them.
After the surgical strikes conducted against terror launch pads in PoK on September 29, the Indian armed forces are maintaining a high-level of operational readiness along the western front. The Indian security establishment’s assessment is that Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif “may try something” in the form of BAT (border action team) operations across the LoC or a major terror strike in the Indian mainland.
“Gen Sharif is likely to keep tensions high in the run-up to his slated retirement towards November-end,” said a source.
“Gen Sharif may be angling for an extension as the Army chief or assuming some other important role despite his edgy equation with the Nawaz Sharif government. Since Thursday morning, there has been a sudden increase in firing by Pakistani forces both along the line of control (LoC) and international border (IB) in J&K,” he added.