When most of the world including Pakistan itself is badly hit by Coronavirus pandemic, its troops continued evil designs and tried to commit major terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir by pushing Border Action Team (BAT) commandos and militants on the Line of Control (LoC) in Degwar sector of Poonch district in the wee hours of this morning prompting immediate retaliation by the Indian Army in which two BAT members, an equal number of militants and three enemy troopers were killed.

Sources told the Excelsior that Pakistan army was regularly resorting to mortar shelling and firing on the LoC at Degwar, Kirni, Kasba and surrounding sectors of Poonch district and only a day before a mortar shell had landed in the heart of Poonch town but didn’t explode averting a major catastrophe.

In early hours of this morning, Pakistan army tried to facilitate infiltration by four militants including two BAT commandos into the Indian territory from Degwar sector of Poonch. The Indian troops, who were maintaining high alert on the LoC, observed movement of infiltrators.

Simultaneously, Pakistani troops opened firing from their forward posts to facilitate infiltration by the BAT commandos and militants to which the Indian side retaliated, leading to heavy exchanges.

Finding themselves trapped, the BAT commandos and militants tried to escape but were caught in heavy volume of firing by the Indian side in which all four were killed. Their bodies are reportedly lying on the LoC.

In exchange of firing and shelling between Indo-Pak troops, two bunkers of Pakistan army were hit in which at least three Pakistani troopers were killed and two to three others were injured. However, there were no casualties on the Indian side.

“A major terror plot backed by the Pakistani troops has been foiled with the killing of two BAT commandos and two militants, apart from three Pakistan troopers, who were facilitating the intrusion bid by resorting to firing and shelling on forward Indian posts to give cover to the infiltrators,” sources said.

The BAT commandos generally comprised hardcore militants of Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) outfits who had been trained by the Pakistan army. However, sometimes, the Pakistan army regulars also try to infiltrate for the BAT action, sources said, adding that slain BAT commandos as well as militants were well trained and were carrying with them sophisticated weapons and explosives for causing destruction on the Indian side.

Asserting that the Pakistan army plot was aimed at either targeting forward defence posts along the LoC or infiltrate and attack a strategic installation in Poonch, sources said it was successfully thwarted by the Indian troops with swift action in which the intruders were targeted and eliminated.

However, they said, two Pakistani bunkers from where the enemy troops were raining mortars and bullets to give cover to the infiltrators, were hit in retaliatory action by the Indian Army in which at least three Pakistani troopers were killed while two to three others were injured.

Bodies of two BAT commandos and as many militants were lying on the LoC and hadn’t been taken away by the Pakistan army so far to their side. However, the Pakistani troops were seen carrying dead and injured Jawans to the hospital after the bunkers were hit in the Indian retaliatory action.

Slain BAT commandos and militants seemed to be aged between 22 to 25. While the commandos were wearing combat dresses, the militants were in Pathan suits, sources said, adding they were equipped with deadly assault rifles with which they resorted to random firing to cause casualties of the Indian Army personnel after being trapped in the firing but were killed within few minutes of the Indian action.

Since August 5 when the Central Government had abrogated special Constitutional provisions of Jammu and Kashmir and bifurcated the erstwhile State into two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh, Pakistan army has been regularly violating ceasefire on the LoC in twin border districts of Rajouri and Poonch besides Kupwara and other sectors in Kashmir.

In the process, Pakistan army has also tried to facilitate several infiltration attempts by the BAT commandos and militants towards the Indian side but has failed miserably.

In retaliatory action by the Indian Army, Pakistan has suffered heavy casualties and infrastructural damage.

A day before, Pakistan army had targeted Poonch town and the mortar shell had exploded near the BJP office at Jarnaili Mohalla but didn’t explode and failed to cause any casualties. It was safely defused by the Bomb Disposal Squad yesterday.