Baseless And Motivated: India Summons Pakistan Diplomat Over ‘Illegal’ Infiltration Attempt

India on Saturday summoned Pakistan’s Chargé d’Affaires and lodged a strong protest over what New Delhi described as the continued facilitation of illegal cross-border infiltration, while rejecting Islamabad’s allegations over the October 2 firing incident in Punjab’s Ferozepur sector as “baseless and motivated”.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said three individuals had crossed into Indian territory along the International Border and continued moving towards the border fence despite repeated warnings from the Border Security Force (BSF) to return to Pakistan.

“The BSF was compelled to engage them for posing an imminent security threat,” the MEA said, adding that the incident reflected what it described as a recurring pattern of cross-border movement by armed narcotics syndicates operating from Pakistan.

India urged Pakistan to investigate the alleged infiltration and drug-smuggling activities and examine the alleged complicity of its border-guarding forces. New Delhi also called on Islamabad to respect the sanctity of the International Border, follow existing bilateral arrangements and take measures to prevent unauthorised movement across the frontier.

The diplomatic exchange followed Pakistan’s decision to summon India’s Chargé d’Affaires in Islamabad over the deaths of two Pakistani nationals in the border incident. Islamabad described the two men as unarmed civilians and accused BSF personnel of using “unprovoked lethal force”.

Pakistan rejected India’s characterisation of the men as infiltrators and called for an “immediate, transparent and credible” investigation, along with disciplinary and legal action against those found responsible.

The two sides have offered sharply different accounts of what happened. Pakistani authorities said the men had inadvertently crossed the International Border, while Indian officials said three people entered Indian territory, one turned back after warnings and the other two continued towards the Indian side.

The exchange of diplomatic protests comes amid renewed security concerns along the Punjab frontier. India has linked the incident to alleged cross-border infiltration and drug-smuggling networks, while Pakistan has focused on the deaths and demanded an investigation into the use of force.

New Delhi has now asked Islamabad to ensure that its forces prevent unauthorised crossings and take concrete steps to prevent similar incidents from recurring.