The

’s strong retaliatory action in response to ‘unprovoked firing’ from across the border bore results on Thursday with the Pakistan Rangers seeking a meeting to resolve the issue.

The sector commanders of both sides met in Suchetgarh, R S Pura, on Thursday during which the

warned Pakistan Rangers that its provocative acts will “not be tolerated”. The BSF officers strongly objected to Pakistan targeting sniper assaults at its jawans and unprovoked firing and shelling directed at a number of Indian villages, innocent civilians and their properties.

Pakistani officers reportedly didn’t have anything to say when charged by India with attempting to disturb peace at the border but suggested that lines of “communication” should be kept open in such scenarios.

The BSF said in a statement that the meeting took place “on the request” of the Pakistani side. A similar request by the Indian side was “not responded to” by the Rangers a few days back, official sources said. The meeting was the first between the two sides since “heavy shelling and firing was experienced on the IB during the last week”, the border guarding force said in a statement. “During the meeting, the BSF strongly objected to (Pakistan’s) dastardly acts of sniping at its two soldiers on January 3 and 17 and further unprovoked firing and shelling targeting a number of Indian villages, innocent civilians and their properties.

The 30-minute meet saw a five-member BSF team led by BSF DIG P S Dhiman sitting across a 10-member

team headed by Brigadier Amjad Hussain, sector commander of

(Sialkot) sector. During the last week, the statement said, the BSF “successfully foiled a number of infiltration attempts from the Pakistani soil.”

The BSF had fired over 9,000 rounds of mortar shells across the

in the last few days as part of “pinpointed” retaliatory action against this “unprovoked” firing from across the border.