JAMMU: According to officials, the sporadic gunfire between Pakistani Rangers and BSF soldiers along the International Border in the Jammu district’s Arnia and RS Pura sectors came to a halt early on Friday. Following the unjustified firing by Pakistani Rangers, several families that had fled the border hamlets over night have finally begun to return home. The cross-border gunfire on Thursday night that targeted five Indian checkpoints along the International Border (IB) injured a civilian and a jawan of the Border Security Force (BSF). In effect, the BSF had responded to the shooting. “There is no longer any firing (across the border).” Now that things are quiet, a senior BSF officer said.According to him, there was sporadic gunfire between the two sides until three in the morning. According to the source, a woman and two BSF members were hurt on Thursday night and are now being treated in a hospital. A jawan has been relocated to Jammu’s GMC Hospital. They have been identified as Sher Singh and Karnataka-born Basavraj SR. Rajni Bala of Arnia has been identified as the woman. The border residents were terrified after Pakistan Rangers employed heavy machine guns and launched 82 and 120 mm mortar rounds. When the unprovoked shooting began on Thursday night, a number of people—particularly migrant laborers—had departed the border hamlets of Arnia, Treva, Suchetgarh, and Jabowal. In the border region, a number of families had sought sanctuary in temples, bunkers, and other secure locations. Residents in border communities reported seeing such heavy bombardment and gunfire after a long period of time. “The firing started as we were eating. We abandoned the food and fled with our families,” Bihar labourer Joginder Kumar remarked. After fleeing a frontline village due to bombardment, Kumar and 51 other people, including women and children, sought refuge in a shrine in Arnia. Kumar expressed their fear. “We were aware of the firing. We’ve seen it now,” he remarked. In a forward hamlet, Ekta Devi exclaimed, “We were saved by God’s favour when a mortar round struck a house.Up until this morning, a lot of firing took place. Every glass window cracked. Rakesh Kumar, a different villager, reported that he and a few other villagers were going back to their village after seeking refuge in a bunker in a front village. “After many years, there was heavy shelling and firing. For the previous two years, there was tranquilly. You can’t trust Pakistan,” he declared. Social media users shared numerous videos of people leaving their homes as the firing began, many of which became viral. When the gunfire began during a wedding ceremony in Arnia, many of the guests left. “Our marriage was maintained. After the firing began, the majority of the attendees left,” claimed Kuldeep, the bridegroom’s relative.This is October’s second breach of the ceasefire. On October 19, Pakistan Rangers opened fire at the Vikram post along the IB in the Arnia sector, injuring two BSF jawans. On February 25, 2021, India and Pakistan signed a cease-fire agreement under which both countries pledged to rigorously abide by all cease-fire agreements along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir and other areas.
