Police detain pigeon in India carrying note threatening prime minister Narendra Modi

The message was signed by the militant group responsible for recent deadly attacks on Indian military bases, police say

It is not the first time India has taken pigeons thought to be from Pakistan into custody (iStockphoto)

Police in India have detained a pigeon which was carrying a note allegedly containing a threat to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The pigeon was captured near India’s heavily armed border with Pakistan.

The bird was carrying a note which reportedly warned Mr Modi that every Pakistani child is prepared to wage war against India.

Border Security Force (BSF) officers found the pigeon in Pathankot in the north Indian state of Punjab.

The area was the site of a deadly attack on a military air base in January which was carried out by Pakistani-based militants.

According to AFP, Pathankot police inspector Rakesh Kumar said: “We took it into custody last evening.

“The BSF found it with a note in Urdu saying something like 'Modi, we're not the same people from 1971. Now each and every child is ready to fight against India'.”

The last full-scale war between the two countries was in 1971, during the Bangladesh Liberation war.

Mr Kumar said the note was signed by Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

“We are investigating the matter very seriously,” he added.

Balloons with similar messages have also been found in Punjab in recent weeks.

In 2013, a dead falcon with a camera attached was found by Indian forces and last year, another pigeon was seized in India on suspicion of being used for espionage by Pakistan.

Since the partition of India following the Second World War, which split the British Indian Empire and created modern Pakistan and eventually Bangladesh, India and Pakistan have been embroiled in numerous wars and skirmishes.

The last war between the two countries was a clash in 1999 after Pakistani troops crossed the border. Following huge international pressure and after suffering heavy losses, Pakistan withdrew its soldiers.

But tensions between the neighbours are high. Pakistani militants have twice attacked army camps, killing at least 19 soldiers and one border guard in recent weeks.

Pakistan denied the latest attack, on Sunday, had taken place, but said cross border shelling had killed two Pakistani soldiers earlier that day.

The US has urged India and Pakistan to show restraint.