Amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, Pakistan Rangers on Thursday apprehended P.K. Singh, an Indian Border Security Force (BSF) soldier who allegedly crossed into Pakistani territory in Punjab.
According to Indian media reports, the soldier — identified as Constable P.K. Singh of the BSF’s 182nd Battalion — inadvertently strayed across the border during a routine patrol near the Ferozepur sector.
“During the routine movement, P.K. Singh inadvertently moved beyond the Indian border fence and entered Pakistani territory, where the Pakistan Rangers detained him across the Ferozepur border,” Indian news outlet India Today reported.
Read More: Pak Warns India: Water Diversion Will Be Treated as an Act of War
The Indian authorities have yet to issue an official statement regarding the incident. The Pakistan side has also not confirmed any further details at the time of publication.
The development comes at a time of escalated diplomatic and military strain between the two nuclear-armed neighbours, following a deadly attack on tourists in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), which India blames on Pakistan — an allegation Islamabad has categorically rejected.
Further details regarding the detention, possible repatriation of the soldier, and any communication between the two countries remain awaited.
In a tit-for-tat move in the backdrop of the escalatory measures taken by New Delhi, the National Security Committee (NSC) has warned that any move by India to divert the flow of water lawfully belonging to Pakistan will be “considered an act of war”.
The move comes in response to India’s unilateral decision to suspend the six-decade-old Indus Water Treaty and also taking other steps against Pakistan in the aftermath of an attack on tourists in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK).
The attack on Tuesday claimed the lives of 26 people — including one Nepali national — and India’s government blames Pakistan for the attack, a claim that Islamabad vehemently denied and also termed as a “false flag operation”.
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