Enough aspersions have been cast by the skeptics and particularly by political parties like Congress and Aam Aadmi Party clamouring for proof of the 29 September Indian Special Forces surgical strike across Line of Control. Those in the flock are AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal besides Congressmen like P Chidambaram, Sanjay Nirupam and other senior leaders should now relax and believe in every bit of the official announcement made by the DGMO Lt Gen Ranbir Singh.
CNN-News18 has nailed the lie of the Pakistani establishment that no surgical strike took place and it was only “routine” firing along the LoC. What is even more important that Pakistan’s falsehood had been exposed by none other than one of their own officers in uniform — Superintendent of Police (Special Branch) of the Mirpur Range in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir.
It was the SP’s job to prepare a report as to what had happened in the area on 29 September as it falls under his jurisdiction. He couldn’t be more candid for he thought that he was speaking to his superior in his own force and gave out all the conclusive proof that anyone would have ever asked for.
The CNN-News18 exclusive expose was televised minutes after Nawaz Sharif finished delivering his speech from a prepared text, almost in the same manner and fashion as he had done at the UN General Assembly in New York. The only notable difference being that this time around it was in Urdu and the rants against India were a bit shriller. What was interesting that Sharif was parroting the same old denial line of their army that only two of their soldiers were “martyred” in firing at the LoC.
The Pakistani PM had no inkling that minutes later one of his own senior officer from the area where Indian forces conducted surgical strikes causing “significant casualties” would be heard all across the world saying that at least five soldiers were killed and that the bodies of unknown number of terrorists were quickly removed by the Pakistani military.
The Mirpur SP also says that immediately after the surgical strike Pakistani army has cordoned off all these areas. That was clearly done to put a blinder on fatal setback Pakistani army had suffered and as such get in an instant denial mode — “nothing happened… “kids playing there”.
The SP gave out that Pakistani army put the dead bodies in ambulances, around dozen coffins were brought to take bodies to their respective villages for burial. “There were attacks on separate places… several places were attacked… they also met resistance…. Sir, that was night… you can say roughly 3-4 hours… between 2 am and 4 or 5am… the attack continued between that time,” he told CNN-News18.
The timing is same as was told by sources in India. It is also broadly the same as was put out by Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) put out in its initial statement. The ISPR statement had said: “Pakistani troops befittingly responded to Indian unprovoked firing on LoC in Bhimber, hotspring, kel, and Lipa sectors. Exchange of fire which started at 0230 hrs after midnight continued till 0800 hrs. Two soldiers were martyred.”
What is most damning for Pakistan is that their officer has confirmed what India had been saying all along that terrorism is part of official state policy of Pakistan and its army is the principal exporter of terror. He said the Pakistani Army facilitates jihadi movement in forward areas and arranges for their crossing over to India: “The Army brings them, sir… it is in their hands.”
Nothing could be more conclusive than this. It should be enough to the likes of Kejriwal, Nirupam, Surjewala, and end number of other skeptics in politics and in other walks of life. It should also come as an eye opener to the big foreign media brands who enjoyed Pakistani hospitality on a bus trip to PoK to report parroted Pakistani line of general quiet.
India never needed to give a proof of the attack. Those asking questions in the domestic political arena would never be satisfied, as has happened in so many cases in the past. They could also seek forensic tests of the proof, if a video footage or picture was released, send them to their own preferred labs and come to their own conclusions.
They have not believed words of DGMO Indian Army and MEA, spoken after CCS meet chaired by the Prime Minister. In a democracy, one is free to disbelieve its own government. But they would now be forced to believe Pakistani officer’s words.
As for Pakistan, no proof is ever good enough — be it Parliament attack, serial blasts in Mumbai suburban trains, Mumbai terror attack, Pathankot, Uri Attack and so on. It’s a waste of time and energy at the highest level to give them proof. It will never accept any proof and keep on asking for more. Even today Nawaz Sharif in his speech in Pakistan national assembly criticised India for naming Pakistan within six hours of the attack. He was trying to convince his domestic audience that India had done that to derail his agenda in UNGA.
Prime Modi in his speech at Kozhikode had blasted Sharif for reading from a text prepared by terrorists. Today he was reading again.
The CNN-News18 revelation proves that Sharif first reaction after surgical strike “condemning unprovoked and naked aggression of Indian forces along the Line of Control” was a sincere one.
That was initial acceptance of reality, of the surgical strike by India. Sharif, his government, and his army’s subsequent falsehood would continue to hurt him in days to come.