NEW DELHI (TIP): Ahead of a possible bilateral engagement next month in Amritsar, the standoff between India and Pakistan continued with India issuing a demarche on continued ceasefire violations along LoC by the neighbouring country.

This is the third such note issued this month by the government, which said Pakistani forces had committed as many as 12 such violations between November 9 and 15.

The demarche was delivered to a senior diplomat of the Pakistan high commission on Wednesday. The diplomatic and military standoff continues even as India and Pakistan are presented with the possibility of a high-level engagement early December on the sidelines of the Afghanistan-related Heart of Asia conference. While Sartaj Aziz, the adviser to Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif, had confirmed his participation for the event in an interview on Tuesday, India said it is yet to officially hear from Islamabad in this regard.

MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said India has told Pakistan that despite calls for restraint, Pakistani forces have committed 12 ceasefire violations between November 9 and 15, employing artillery and 120mm heavy mortars against Indian posts.

“These violent acts constitute a clear violation of the ceasefire agreement of 2003. The government has also protested the deliberate targeting by the Pakistan army of 14 villages along the Line of Control (LoC) during the period November 9 to 15, which has resulted in four fatal and 25 non-fatal casualties besides causing extensive damage to public and private property and the displacement of civilian population,” he said. Source: TOI