New Delhi: India on Friday squarely blamed Pakistan for the tensions along the border, saying "de-escalation is entirely in Pakistan's hands" and also scoffed at Islamabad trying to term India the aggressor as "allegations without any basis".
A day after Defence Minister Arun Jaitley said the neighbouring country will have to pay a heavy price if it did not stop its "adventurism" at the border and Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the "enemy has realised that times have changed", India's external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin spoke in equally strong terms.
He said the new government has been very serious about peace moves with Pakistan, and had also taken the first step to engage with Islamabad in a peaceful manner.
Pakistan's response "is there for all to see - from a media spectacle before exploratory talks between foreign secretaries, hostile propaganda against India at the international level, continued terrorism against India and more recently violence against our citizens on the International Boundary", he said.
Akbaruddin said India is thus in "a mode that we will respond appropriately, it is for Pakistan to either escalate or de-escalate. We will respond in as appropriate to what will be their efforts in this regard".
He said first and foremost Pakistan and its security forces should end their "adventurism along the International Border and the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. Peace and tranquility along the IB and LoC needs to be completely restored so that our civilian population can return to their home and their lives."
"While we will not talk out of fear, we have no fear of talks," he added.
Akbaruddin's comments came as firing along the border showed signs of de-escalation after more than a week. It has left eight people dead on the Indian side so far.
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