India will never fire first bullet, but won't stop retaliating if fired upon: Rajnath

Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said that India has never and will never open unprovoked fire on Pakistan but if there is firing from the other side, then Pakistan should not expect any mercy.

"Pakistan began firing on our borders without any reason in November. I saw that five of our soldiers had been martyred and houses were destroyed. When I asked the BSF as to why we are not reacting, they told me that they were waving the white flag so that there could have a dialogue and stop the firing. I told them that the first bullet should under no circumstances be fired from the Indian side, but if we are fired upon, then we should not stop retaliating and strike back even harder," Rajnath said here while addressing a public rally.

The Home Minister pointedly asked Pakistan to answer if India had ever opened unprovoked fire on their borders and how they could stand to take the lives of innocent civilians and slammed them for cancelling the NSA-level talks.

"Even today India wants to talk with Pakistan on terrorism. Our Prime Minister is continuously trying to do so, but it is not happening. But whenever we try to make any attempt for a dialogue, they begin firing," he said.

He added that, until the BJP government was in power, they would not let India's pride and dignity be sullied in any way.

Rajnath Singh had earlier visited AIIMS in New Delhi on Saturday and met police constable Mohammad Salim and BSF jawan Ashok Kumar who had been injured in the gunbattle with Pakistani terrorists in Rafiabad, Srinagar from which a terrorist had been captured alive.