Army repatriates three children who had crossed over to Indian side of LoC in J&K's Poonch

An Indian army soldier in Jammu and Kashmir. Pic/AFP

The Indian Army on Friday repatriated three children who had crossed over the Line of Control (LoC) from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) and were apprehended in Poonch.

"The children were safely repatriated to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir," a defence spokesperson said. On August 18, the Army apprehended the three children in Poonch.

The Indian troops deployed along the LoC in Poonch sector noticed a suspicious movement on the Indian side of the border, the defence spokesperson said. The area was immediately cordoned off and the three children, aged between nine and 17 years, were apprehended, he added.

There was a fourth person who was the eldest amongst them and managed to run away, the defence spokesperson said, adding that the Indian troops did not open fire on the individual attempting to go back to PoK as he appeared to be a minor.

The children revealed that they belonged to Chhatra and Troti Dharmshal across the LoC. They claimed to be labourers excavating sand from river and nallah beds and said they had crossed over the LoC for fishing, the defence spokesperson said.

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