Defence Minister Rajanth Singh has reacted to the report by the Guardian that the Indian government, through its intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing, carried out assassinations of 20 terrorists on Pakistani soil.
In an interview to News18, Singh said that if any terrorist from Pakistan tries to harm India, they will be given a befitting reply.
"India always wants to maintain good relations with its neighbouring countries... But if anyone tries to provoke India again and again, comes to India, and tries to promote terrorist activities, then we will not spare them," Mr Singh said.
When prodded again, the minister reiterated that if the need arises, Indian forces will enter Pakistan, and eliminate threats.
"If they run away to Pakistan, we will enter Pakistan to kill them," Singh told the channel in response to a question about the report.
Earlier, the Indian government has firmly refuted claims made by the UK-based Guardian newspaper report that New Delhi, through its intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing, carried out assassinations of terrorists on Pakistani soil since 2020.
Responding to the report, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the report false and malicious anti-India propaganda.
It also quoted Foreign Minister S Jaishankar, who had said recently that targeted killings in other countries were not the government of India's policy.
Quoting unnamed intelligence officers from Pakistan and India, the Guardian report claimed that Indian intelligence sleeper cells operating out of the United Arab Emirates carried out assassinations of terrorists in Pakistan. It claimed that 20 such assassinations have been reported since the Pulwama attack of 2019.
An Indian intelligence officer told the Guardian that the Pulwama attack prompted fears within the Indian government that militant groups in Pakistan were planning a repeat of attacks such as the 2008 Mumbai bombings.
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