India has summoned the top Pakistani diplomat in New Delhi, local media reported on Thursday, a day after it announced measures to downgrade ties with Islamabad as relations between the nuclear-armed rivals plummeted following a deadly militant attack in Kashmir.

The death toll from a suspected militant attack in India's Jammu and Kashmir territory has risen to 26, according to the Reuters news agency, citing local police. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was on a two-day visit to Saudi Arabia, has cut short his trip and returned to India

The Pakistani government said it did not want an escalation, but in the wake of a deadly attack in Indian-controlled Kashmir by unidentified militants, analysts warned of an unpredictable situation.