स्वधर्ममपि चावेक्ष्य न विकम्पितुमर्हसि |
धर्म्याद्धि युद्धाच्छ्रेयोऽन्यत्क्षत्रियस्य न विद्यते || -Bhagavad Gita 2.31
The Pahalgam Terror Attack: Ambushing India’s Soul and Spirit
The dastardly beastly and brutal Pahalgam terror attack carried out by the cross-border establishment, visibly showcasing a nefarious nexus between terror organisations, terrorists, armed smugglers, money launderers, intelligence agencies, and the elected government- was single mindedly aimed at derailing Jammu and Kashmir’s path to development, insinuating disharmony amongst different communal groups/ religions in the Indian jurisdiction, as well as somehow, was also meant to derail the world’s focus from increasingly brewing insurgency inside Pakistan’s own territory. With the inhumane terror killings and executions of innocent civilians enjoying their time with families and loved ones at the serene Pahalgam valley, failing to generate the kind of hatred and vicious atmosphere that was meant to be generated; establishment across the border was probably a bit disappointed.
With Indian citizens of all faiths coming in support of those horrifically killed, a national message of solidarity went out in the world, with citizens themselves taking to the streets and asking the armed forces, the established government and those other in authority to take a tactical revengeful retaliatory action against the erring neighbouring nation. This action, which was rightfully termed as a retaliation, and not an offensive take on Pakistan, was strategically thought out and preceded by a number of economical, fiscal-monetary policy changes, putting the Indus Water Treaty into abeyance, stoppage of all cross border trade by all means whatsoever, the non-allowance to naval ships and docking shipyards to deliver any posts/mails/ perishable items from Pakistan into India, the shunning down of diplomatic staff, amongst other retaliatory measures. Pakistan was, is and will be worst-hit by the stoppage of Indus waters into its jurisdiction from the Indian side. This provision will disable the free flow of water into the Punjab province, only province appropriately suitable for agriculture in Pakistan, by all means.
Pakistan’s Present Position and Op. Sindoor
At a time when Pakistan was already dealing with the hijacking of Jaffar Express, the mounting offensives by Baloch rebels, the uprising being witnessed in almost all major cities of Balochistan (particularly Quetta), the brewing inter-organisation rivalry in Taliban and Taliban backed groups, the growing disinterest of the Pakistani establishment in the Taliban backed government at Kabul, the recent military air strikes between Iran and Pakistan, the fruitful delegation-level and diplomatic dialogues being held between the Indian and the Afghan government, the lack of economic prosperity in any of the provinces of Pakistan, and the furore as well as uproar being made by the Sindhi in the Sindh province of Pakistan against the Punjabi-majority government and military at Islamabad and Rawalpindi- Pakistan could have avoided playing ‘terror’ games with its Indian counterpart. More so, when India absolutely means no harm to any of its neighbour, least of all to Pakistan. India has and always will be playing her role in the timeless and immemorial philosophy of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbhakam’, whereby each and every nation, each human being, all kinds of species, all things-animate or inanimate- are a part of a bigger divine and spiritual plan, whereby even atoms demand and command respect and love. This traditional and civilisational philosophy of India aided her in maintaining her calm and composure for fifteen long days before striking back Pakistan. This was a calculated restraint from the Indian side, because somewhere or the other we still hoped that Pakistan would act against the perpetrators of this attack, even if they were bred at its own soil. But, we were failed yet again.
However, Indian were not take this attack on her identity by lying down low. This attack by terrorists, who were supposedly trained by the Pakistani military and intelligence agencies, was meant to be retaliated in the right way. And so we did do our job. Wing Commander Vyomika Singh to one side, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi on the other, senior diplomat and Foreign Secretary of India Sh. Vikram Misri started the media briefing on 7th May 2025, with the nation listening and watching with eyes not even allowed to blink. This frame of women taking back what was taken from them and their families on 22nd April in the form of Operation Sindoor. The sacred vermilion pays back and how courageously does it do that. With the Indian Armed forces, the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force, along with all the other intelligence agencies, backed by proud Indian civilians, striking deep into the Pakistani territory till Bahawalpur and Muridke was a befitting reply to the outrageous attack being carried out on the fateful day of 22nd April.
Changing Tactics of Warfare and Red Teaming
While the details regarding the operation and the subsequent air strikes and swarm drone attacks by Pakistan is out now in the public domain, Operation Sindoor also threw up some new interesting steps taken by the Indian army in limited war scenarios. It is commonly known that the face of war, or limited combats, or any face-offs in the future is about to be change, and predictably so. Even though traditional warfare systemic apparatus will still hold their importance and military decision making at the highest level, will still look a lot more similar to the older practices, a new room is being made for niche attack systems such as FPV/Kamikaze drones, swarm drone warfare, digital warfare, information warfare, diplomatic strikes, amongst others. However, the concept of ‘Red-Teaming’ is also coming up as a niche feature in the Indian warfare scenario. Even though it is not new at all, having being used by the United States of America (USA) against the Soviets during the Cold War era, this is the first time that the same has been deployed in the Indian scenario.
Red Teaming basically involves bringing in a team or a group of experts who can understand the mindset and the tactics of the enemy. Their basic role includes understanding, or for that matter predicting according to the previous pattern analysis of responses/ actions taken as to what the enemy might think and do in a particular situation, how the same would react/act in a given situation, and as well as to gauge the possible overall strategy and military planning of the enemy under any given circumstance. This leads to understanding the whole picture in front of a team of experts who then communicate the same to their military echelons, for possible steps to be taken and counter-military strategies to be made for a possible future or anticipated attack. This signals a shift. From thinking on the ground after gauging a particular situation, to making plans after certain situation has come up- India is now treading a different path. To protect her unity, integrity and sovereignty, India knows a premonition and pre-emptive action plan is but, utmost quintessential to gain traction in today’s highly interconnected military warfare, which is equally unpredictable but easy to analyse for the ones engaged as red- teaming experts. According to historical records, this term has been derived from war games of the Cold War era when the ‘red-team’ would play the role of an enemy and the ‘blue-team’ would guess and gauge the strategies that the red team could employ. According to the reports of various media outlets (Indian Express, Firstpost, et al), the red team was embedded within the broader operational planning process and consisted five senior officers drawn from various commands and postings across the country.
Parting Note
To anyone looking up to India right now, India has truly shown how obstinate terror-sponsoring neighbors are dealt with and how they should be dealt with. Silence is courage and patience is power, but India understands that laxity and lackadaisical approach in dealing with hate-mongers and terror sponsors must be dealt with an iron hand. To fight for the rightful war is every human’s duty, and to live a peaceful society is every soul’s right- and India, is doing her duty, as well as fulfilling each of these responsibilities. The present diplomatic missions that have been sent by India to different nations are a symbol of India’s continued commitment towards eradicating terror and terrorists from the safe havens and bringing them to justice in the righteous way possible. This is embedded and imbibed in each Indian’s mind, through the age old customs and principles of natural justice, equity, fairness, global constitutionalism, and tenets of good conscience as well bonafide action tracks. The world now needs to wake up from its slumber before hatred feeds upon innocent souls and kills the very spirit of righteous fight. Jai Hind.
