Indian security forces responded to “speculative firing” by Pakistani troops along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday night, military sources confirmed.
The skirmishes, described as “small arms firing” by officials, resulted in no casualties but underscored the fragile security climate days after 26 people, including a Nepali national, were killed in an assault India attributes to “cross-border links.”
The exchange occurred as New Delhi formalised its suspension of the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, notifying Pakistan that the decision takes “immediate effect.” In a letter to Islamabad’s water resources secretary, India cited Pakistan’s “sustained cross-border terrorism” and refusal to negotiate treaty revisions as grounds for the move.
The document, reviewed by NDTV, accused Pakistan of breaching the pact’s “fundamental obligation of good faith” while highlighting demographic shifts and energy needs that render the agreement outdated.
The obligation to honour a treaty in good faith is fundamental to a treaty. However, what we have seen instead is sustained cross-border terrorism by Pakistan targeting the Indian Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
The suspension, approved by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s security cabinet on Wednesday, follows India’s expulsion of Pakistani military attaches and closure of the Attari land border crossing. New Delhi asserts the treaty – which governs shared river resources – is incompatible with contemporary challenges, including terrorism and climate-driven water scarcity.
Islamabad, however, has threatened to scrap other bilateral pacts, including the 1972 Simla Agreement that codifies the LoC.
The diplomatic rupture stems from Tuesday’s terror attack in Pahalgam, which Modi vowed to avenge by tracking down “every terrorist and their backers.” India’s letter emphasised that Pakistan’s “consistent cross-border terrorism” has hindered its ability to utilise treaty entitlements, while Islamabad’s silence on renegotiation talks has “directly impeded” resolution efforts.
