New Delhi: An IAF pilot was captured by Pakistan after an air combat Wednesday during which the two sides said they shot down each other’s warplanes.
The aerial engagement between India and Pakistan for the first time since the 1971 war marked a dramatic escalation of confrontation prompting world leaders to urge the two neighbouring countries to exercise “utmost restraint”.
India claimed it shot down a F-16 warplane of Pakistan while it lost a MiG 21 during the fierce engagement between the air forces of the two countries along the Line of Control.
Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan sought to defuse the escalating tension by saying war is futile and can lead to unknown consequences while making an oblique reference to the nuclear weapons that both countries possess.
The Pakistan Army retracted its earlier statement that two Indian Air Force pilots were arrested and in the evening said it had “only one” pilot in its custody.
“There is only one pilot under Pakistan Army’s custody. Wing Comd Abhinandan is being treated as per norms of military ethics,” Pakistani military spokesperson Major General Asif Ghafoor said in the evening. IAF sources identified him as Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman. India later in the day summoned the acting high commissioner of Pakistan and demanded the safe return of the IAF pilot detained by Pakistan following an aerial engagement by air forces of the two countries.
As tension mounted, the entire airspace north of New Delhi was briefly ‘‘vacated’’. Nine airports in Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Punjab were closed for civilian traffic for some time but opened later in the day.
An IAF copter crashed in Budgam in Kashmir, killing five people. One of the deceased was identified as Kifayat Hussain Ganaie, a local resident, while the identity of other four – believed to be IAF personnel – is being ascertained.
There was no direct established link with the activity by Pakistani jets, but for many it was just a sign of the disturbed times.
There was nightlong heavy firing and shelling on forward and civilian areas from across the LoC in Rajouri and Poonch with the Army and the BSF being put on the highest degree of alertness.
Residents of border areas were asked to remain inside their homes.
While government and defence establishment took stock of the situation, building up since the February 14 attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama, attention swivelled on the IAF pilot in enemy territory. External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar, accompanied by Air Vice Marshal RGK Kapoor, said details are being ascertained about Pakistan’s claim of having captured one Indian pilot.
Officials said Pakistani fighter jets violated Indian air space in Jammu region’s Poonch and Rajouri sectors but were pushed back by Indian aircraft. The jets dropped bombs while returning but there were no immediate reports of casualties or damage. “Pakistan has responded this morning by using its Air Force to target military installations on the Indian side. Due to our high state of alertness, Pakistan’s attempts were foiled successfully,’’ Kumar said. He said Pakistan Air Force activity was detected and the IAF responded instantly. ‘‘In that aerial engagement, one Pakistan Air Force fighter aircraft was shot down by a MiG 21 Bison of the IAF. The Pakistani aircraft was seen by ground forces falling from the sky on the Pakistan side. ‘‘In this engagement, we’ve unfortunately lost a MiG 21. The pilot is missing in action. Pakistan has claimed he is in their custody. We are ascertaining the facts,’’ he said.
In Islamabad, the Pakistan Army released a 46-second video showing a blindfolded man claiming he is Abhinandan.
In a live television broadcast, Pakistan’s leader Imran Khan also reiterated the military’s claim that two Indian MiGs were shot down, as he offered to defuse tensions and resolve the issues through talks.He said the Pakistani incursion into the Indian air space was ‘‘only intended to convey that if you can come into our country, we can do the same.’’ ‘‘I ask India: With the weapons you have and the weapons we have, can we really afford a miscalculation? If this (situation) escalates, it will no longer be in my control or in (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi’s,’’ Khan said.
No change in Samjhauta schedule
The Railways Wednesday said the Samjhauta Express will continue to run as per schedule from Delhi to Attari in India, amidst reports that Pakistan has suspended its operations between Wagah to Lahore on its side. “The train will run as per schedule as of now,” Northern Railway spokesperson Deepak Kumar told reporters about its operation on the Indian side. The biweekly train, which runs on Wednesdays and Sundays, will leave at 11:10 pm as per schedule from the Old Delhi Railway station with 26 passengers aboard – four in AC coach, 22 in non-AC coaches – sources said. “We have not received any instructions from authorities about any change in the running of the Samjhauta Express. We will follow all instructions given to us in this regard,” said Railway Minister Piyush Goyal. The train does not have any commercial stops between Delhi and Attari. Originally, the train offered a through service with one rake going all the way between Delhi in India to Lahore in Pakistan. However, now a Pakistani rake stops at Attari at which point passengers have to change trains and board an Indian rake. The Samjhauta Express, named after the Hindi word for “agreement”, comprises six sleeper coaches and an AC 3-tier coach. The train service was started July 22 1976 under the Shimla Agreement that settled the 1971 war between the two nations.
Pilot shown ‘blindfolded’
Two videos released by the Pakistani Army purportedly show captured IAF Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthmaan bloodied and blindfolded but answering questions in a composed and stoic manner. The wing commander, whose MiG 21 Bison aircraft was shot down by the Pakistan Air Force while engaged in hot pursuit to repel enemy attack Wednesday, ejected safely but landed across the Line of Control and was taken into custody by the Pakistan Army. There were other video clips on social media where he could be seen beaten by locals while lying in a stream before being taken away by soldiers. Later, the Pakistanis released a clip showing the blindfolded officer with blood flowing down his cheek, identifying himself as Wing Commander Abhinandan.
Dossier on JeM complicity handed over to Pak
India Wednesday handed over to Pakistan a dossier on “specific details” of involvement of the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) in the Pulwama terror attack on CRPF as also the presence of camps of the UN-proscribed terror outfit in that country. The dossier was handed over to the Acting High Commissioner of Pakistan, who was summoned by the Ministry of External Affairs to lodge a strong protest over Pakistan Air Force targeting Indian military installations, a day after the Indian counter-terror action against the JeM. Government sources have claimed that over 350 JeM terrorists were killed in the pre-dawn strike on the terror camps in Pakistan Tuesday. The JeM had taken the responsibility of the terror strike in Kashmir’s Pulwama district February 14, in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed. “Regret was expressed at continuing denial by Pakistan’s political and military leadership at the presence of terrorist infrastructure in territories under its control,” the Ministry of External Affairs said. “A dossier was handed over to Pakistani side with specific details of JeM complicity in Pulwama terror attack and the presence of JeM terror camps and its leadership in Pakistan,” it said.