The missile was accidentally launched from a military base into neighbouring Pakistan after what the Indian Defence Ministry called a “technical malfunction”. Pakistan responded to the incident by warning India that the incident could have “unpleasant consequences”.
A statement from the Indian Defence Ministry called the inadvertent missile launch “deeply regrettable”.
They said: “On 9 March 2022, in the course of a routine maintenance, a technical malfunction led to the accidental firing of a missile.”
They added: “It is learnt that the missile landed in an area of Pakistan.
“While the incident is deeply regrettable, it is also a matter of relief that there has been no loss of life due to the accident.”
The Indian government took a “serious view” of the accidental launch, and “ordered a high-level Court of Enquiry” into it, the ministry said.
The incident was slammed by Pakistan’s foreign ministry, calling the incident an “unprovoked violation of its airspace by an Indian origin ‘super-sonic flying object’”.
They added that a “strong protest” was being made to India’s charge d’affaires in Islamabad.
The accidental launch was labelled “imprudent” by Pakistan, adding it showed “callousness towards regional peace and stability”.
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Islamabad continued that it had risked incurring civilian casualties and jeopardising aircraft.
Major-General Babar Iftikhar, a spokesperson for the Pakistani military, told reporters on Thursday that a “high-speed flying object” landed near the city of Mian Channu.
He added that it had come from Sirsa, a city in north India not far from New Delhi.
He said: “The flight path of this object endangered many national and international passenger flights both in Indian and Pakistani airspace as well as human life and property of ground.”
Pakistan warned India “to be mindful of the unpleasant consequences of such negligence and take effective measures to avoid the recurrence of such violations in future”.
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