Deepak Dwivedi
WHEN the dramatic announcement of ceasefire between India and Pakistan came in the evening of May 10, New Delhi had already achieved its basic objective: hitting terrorists and terror infrastructure wherever it is.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address to the nation two days later was an emphatic reiteration of this strategic shift. His words – “terror and talks cannot go together, terror and trade cannot go together, and water and blood cannot flow together – were aimed not just at Pakistan, but also at the international community.
India will no longer play by the old rules where diplomacy coexisted with terrorism, or where international pressure blurred accountability. Operation Sindoor, the swift and calibrated response to the barbaric Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, marked a tectonic shift in the country’s security posture.
Pak’s lie exposed
A day later, standing in front of the advanced S-400 air defence system, which Pakistan claimed it had destroyed, PM Modi exposed Islamabad’s blatant lie as he made a televised address to the troops at the forward air force base in Punjab’s Adampur. In a stern message, he said Pakistan’s Army, and terrorists that it shelters, have nowhere to run or hide anymore.
Crediting the Indian armed forces for sending a decisive message to Pak military, the PM said, “You all (soldiers) have shown the Pakistan Army that there is not a place left in Pakistan where it can shelter terrorists,” adding, “There is no corner left in Pakistan where terrorists can sit in peace. We can hit them no matter where they are in Pakistan.”
PM Modi has made it clear that India never wanted to escalate the situation. India’s restraint in avoiding civilian targets, even while dismantling a fifth of Pakistan’s air infrastructure, spoke volumes.
This was not mindless retaliation; it was calibrated justice. And the use of indigenous platforms like Akash air defence systems and counter-drone tech reflects military strength as well as strategic maturity.
PoK return agenda
By calling out Pakistan for holding state funerals for slain terrorists, the Prime Minister made one thing clear – India’s only agenda with Islamabad is the end of terror and the return of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). In his national address, PM Modi clarified that the ceasefire came at Pakistan’s request, effectively silencing voices claiming third-party mediation. All bets would be off if Pakistan military undertakes any misadventure and the nuclear blackmail will not work.
The ‘new normal’ of deterrence – which began with the surgical strikes after the Uri attack and was shored up with the Balakot strike after Pulwama 2019 – has now been re-etched clearly and firmly. The ceasefire in no way implies a reversal of that doctrine in India’s Pakistan policy.
Diplomatic efforts
Going ahead, however, will not be without challenges. India has doubled its diplomatic efforts to convince the world that Pakistan needs to be compelled to realise that sponsoring cross-border terrorism will entail consequences and cost.
At the same time, India is also reviewing its counter-terrorism strategy and enhancing the country’s broader defence capabilities. New Delhi’s friends, be they in Washington, Moscow, Berlin or Riyadh, have been told that India has a stated position on the conditions for engagement with Pakistan. These have been indelibly refreshed and redefined after Operation Sindoor.
