India to respond after Kashmir attack

India's foreign minister has pledged a "proportionate" response to the death of two soldiers in an alleged attack by Pakistani soldiers in the disputed Kashmir region.

Salman Khurshid said Tuesday's incident was an "attempt to derail the dialogue" between the two countries.

India says a patrol was attacked by Pakistani soldiers in "a grave provocation" near the so-called Line of Control (LoC).

Pakistan has denied the accusation.

The deaths came two days after a Pakistani soldier was killed near the LoC.

Tuesday's shootings took place near Mendhar, 220km (140 miles) north of the Indian city of Jammu, Indian officials said.

Two Indian soldiers were killed in a firefight which broke out between Pakistani and Indian troops. It lasted about half an hour before "the intruders retreated back towards their side" of the LoC, an Indian statement said.

'Ghastly attack'

"We lost two soldiers and one of them has been badly mutilated," army spokesperson Rajesh Kalia told the AFP news agency.

The dead soldiers were named as Lance Naik Hemraj Singh and Lance Naik Sudhakar Singh.

Salman Khurshid told the NDTV news channel that the alleged attack was "absolutely unacceptable, ghastly, and really, really terrible and extremely short-sighted by their [Pakistani] part".

He said the response by India would be "proportionate".

"We need to do something about this and we will, but it has to be done after careful consideration of all the details in consultation with the defence ministry," Mr Khurshid said.

"This seems like a clear attempt to derail the dialogue. We have to find ways in which the dialogue is not sabotaged or destroyed."

Pakistan's military has rejected the allegations of unprovoked firing as Indian "propaganda".

It said the incident was aimed at "diverting the attention of the world away from the Sunday raid on a Pakistani post by Indian troops in which a Pakistani soldier was killed".

Pakistan has alleged that Indian soldiers crossed the LoC at the time of Sunday's incident, a charge denied by the Indian army.

Exchanges in the disputed area are not uncommon but rarely result in fatalities.

There has been a ceasefire in Kashmir since late 2003.

India suspended a peace process with Pakistan following attacks by Pakistan-based militants in Mumbai in 2008. Negotiations resumed in February last year.

Last month, the nations signed an agreement to ease visa restrictions on travel for some citizens.

- BBC