Pulwama attack: Pak unleashing proxy war in J&K, says Hardeep Puri

Condemning the "cowardly" Pulwama terror attack in which at least 40 CRPF men died, Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri Friday accused Pakistan of unleashing a proxy war in Jammu and Kashmir.

"We express our grief with the families of the CRPF jawans who were martyred following the dastardly and cowardice act of terror in Pulwama yesterday," Puri said here.

Orchestrated by Pakistan based terror group Jaish e Mohammad (JeM), Thursday's attack in which a suicide bomber rammed his vehicle carrying over 100 kg of explosives into a CRPF bus in south Kashmir was one of the deadliest in the Valley.

Addressing a press conference here, Puri said Pakistan was unleashing a proxy war in Jammu and Kashmir and alleged that the country had not taken concrete steps to stop terror attacks on India.

On the Kartarpur corridor issue, Puri said the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre was committed towards letting devotees to pay obeisance at the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara in Pakistan.

However, he warned: "On one hand, Pakistan responded to (setting up) the corridor but on the other hand, it is supporting terror groups on its soil against India. How long will this go (on)?"
Asked about his will to contest Lok Sabha elections from Amritsar as he has been visiting the city frequently, Puri said, "I do not intend to contest elections from the Amritsar Parliament seat."