Indo-Pak standoff: PM Modi has come up trumps

PRIME Minister Narendra Modi was touring Saudi Arabia when terrorists struck in Pahalgam on April 22. He immediately cut short his visit and returned to New Delhi to take charge of the situation.

Reflecting on the terror attack and India’s response, we can safely say that Modi has come up trumps and is today the true monarch of all he surveys. The cards he held were played very carefully, with all possible calculations. His was the winning hand.

Operation Sindoor has consolidated the BJP’s hold on the electorate. The ruling party is likely to win the next few elections. Most of the people I know have appreciated Modi’s leadership at this critical juncture.

The Centre’s contention that abrogating Article 370 and bifurcating Jammu & Kashmir would end the scourge of terrorism has been proven wrong. I was attending a lecture in the Indian Merchants Chamber in South Mumbai when this decision was announced in 2019. Journalists present there sought my views. I told them that had I been a police officer in J&K at that time, my work would have become easier for a while, but eradicating terrorism and dealing with disgruntled locals would remain a challenge till they were won over by the Central Government.

After decades in the police force, there is one truth that officers would of necessity learn: There is no substitute for the active cooperation of the people for policing to be effective.

The Pahalgam attack could not have happened without inputs from a few recalcitrant elements among local residents. The J&K administration promptly destroyed houses of some suspects, probably taking a cue from the Yogi Adityanath-led government in Uttar Pradesh. That was uncalled for. Kashmir residents were already annoyed with terrorists for having targeted tourists, whose presence is essential for their livelihood. The government should have taken advantage of the people’s anger to win them over to its side.

That opportunity was lost once the authorities began razing houses with explosives, even of those suspected of collaborating with terrorists. It is surprising that there were no sane voices in the administration at the meeting that must have been called to plan the response.

Fortunately, much of the lost ground was retrieved when the Indian armed forces launched precision strikes on terrorist camps in Pakistan and PoK. The strikes on the Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters in Bahawalpur were particularly welcome.

Jaish chief Masood Azhar was one of the three big terrorists released by our government in exchange for the passengers of Indian Airlines 814, which was hijacked in December 1999. After his release, he became Pakistani spy agency ISI’s biggest asset and was responsible for the death of many more civilians than were freed during the exchange.

The strikes on his hideouts killed several members of his family, some of whom were actively involved in his mission of hate and mayhem.

Our government made it abundantly clear that we would hit only established terrorist sites and that too at night when civilians were not likely to be around. Yet, the Pakistani armed forces attempted to retaliate by targeting our military installations. In the course of two days of hostilities, both sides got to test the efficacy of their drones and missiles, sourced from different nations. The Turkish drones used by Pakistan were found to be relatively useless. Our BrahMos missiles, the product of an India-Russia joint venture, were lethal. They were used to target Pakistan’s airbases.

News channels in India and Pakistan have given contrasting accounts of the air battles. That is to be expected during hostilities. Reading between the lines, it is apparent that we, too, have suffered loss of aircraft, but not of men who fly them. The truth will emerge but slowly, very slowly.

Whether the US brokered the ceasefire or not is irrelevant. The fact that there has been no incident of cross-border firing this week needs to be noted. Neither Pakistan nor an economically advanced India can afford a war. Our economy, which Modi is valiantly trying to raise to $5-6 trillion by 2030, will suffer to some extent. It will take two-three years to put things back on track.

The Prime Minister gave a rousing speech to the nation on Monday, reiterating his resolve to not allow acts of terrorism to go unpunished. To begin with, he should empower National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval to track down the culprits involved in the Pahalgam massacre and ensure that they are neutralised. The Mossad did this very methodically after Israeli athletes participating in the 1972 Munich Olympics were murdered. This is the type of lesson we need to teach the ISI to counter its efforts to keep the pot boiling.

More importantly, Modi will have to rethink his muscular approach to solve problems in J&K. He needs to win over the people to end terrorism in the state-turned-union territory. Residents should be treated with respect and dignity. That task can be entrusted to the Abdullah family, which has always been pro-India. To understand the centrality of the Abdullahs to the Kashmir problem, readers should go through ex-ambassador Chandrashekhar Dasgupta’s War and Diplomacy in Kashmir 1947-48 and the more recent The Chief Minister and the Spy by former R&AW chief Amarjit Singh Dulat.