India rejects Pak army chief's claim of killing 11 soldiers

Indian Army on Thursday rejected the claims made by Pakistan's Army chief that his men killed 11 Indian soldiers in cross border firing along the Line of Control.

“No fatal casualties due to Pakistan firing on 14, 15 or 16 November. Pakistan Army Chief's claim of killing Indian soldiers on 14 November is false,” a senior Army officer of the Northern Command said on Thursday.

The same was later posted on the Twitter handle of the Northern Command.

On Wednesday, Pakistan Army Chief General Raheel Sharif had claimed that his troops killed at least 11 Indian jawans on the same day when seven Pakistani soldiers were killed in retaliatory firing by Indian troops across the LoC.

General Sharif said this in an informal chat with journalists in the President House where a banquet was organised by the President in honour of visiting Turkish President.

“The day seven of our soldiers were martyred on the border, we killed at least 11 Indian soldiers,” he claimed.

He claimed that Pakistan has killed ‘40-44 Indian troops’ in the current clashes but the Indian army was refusing to accept and own its casualties.

General Sharif said India should ‘show courage’ and own the deaths of its security personnel.

“The Indian army should man up and accept their losses,” he said.

He said Pakistan army was professional force and was accepting its ‘casualties’ while giving befitting response to ‘unprovoked’ firing.

The army chief, who is set to retire later this month, said a message has been conveyed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that his ‘aggressive actions’ will not bear any results.

Pakistan had claimed that seven of its soldiers were killed at the LoC in an alleged ceasefire violation by Indian troops on November 13.

It was a rare direct media talk by the Pakistani Chief of Army Staff who normally avoids media and lets the media wing of army to interact with journalists.