Rajnath holds Pakistan responsible for Dinanagar attack

Holding Pakistan responsible for the July 27 Dinanagar terror attack, union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday said any attack by enemies will meet an effective and forceful response from the Indian security forces.

Making a formal statement in the Rajya Sabha, the home minister said the central government was committed to rooting out terrorism from the country.

"I take this opportunity to assure the house that the government is firmly committed to rooting out terrorism from India. I also assure the house that the government will do everything possible to prevent cross-border terrorism aimed against India," Rajnath Singh said.

The minister gave details on how the terrorists crossed the international border and entered India.

"A preliminary analysis of the Global Positioning System (GPS) data indicates that the terrorists infiltrated from Pakistan through the area near Tash in Gurdaspur district, where the Ravi river enters Pakistan," Rajnath Singh said.

"It is also suspected that the same terrorists placed five Improvised Explosive Devices on the railway track near village Talwandi between Dinanagar and Jhakoladi which were subsequently defused," he added.

Giving the statement amid din and anti-government slogans in the upper house of parliament, Rajnath Singh also lauded the Punjab Police for neutralising the three terrorists.

The union home minister said the Border Security Force was always on the alert though some terrorist might have succeeded in infiltrating due to heavy rains and swelling of rivers and nullahs on the border.

The house was adjourned till Friday after an uproar by opposition members over the statement.

Meanwhile, the main opposition Congress asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to remain in the house when the issue comes up for discussion.

Addressing a press conference later in the day, senior Congress leader Anand Sharma said Modi must make public what he discussed with his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif as India was still suffering terror strikes from across the border.

"The prime minister should make a statement on the issue in parliament," he said, expressing concern over the terror attack in Dinanagar town of Gurdaspur district in Punjab on Monday.