Lucknow, 14 May (HS):“The bullets that echoed in the serene valley of Pahalgam were

not just aimed at tourists. They were fired into the very idea of India. Its

diversity, its constitutional secularism, its unity. This was not a routine act

of terrorism. It was continuation of ideological warfare, planned by those in

Rawalpindi believe that Pakistan’s existence is validated only when India

bleeds. Behind the trigger wasn’t just a militant’s finger. It was the invisible

hand of an ideology stuck in time, one that refuses to acknowledge the tectonic

shifts in global morality, geopolitics, and regional consciousness,” says Brig

Rakesh Bhatia, a veteran of the Indian Army with over three decades of service,

has served along all borders. His deep interest in geography, history, and

culture shaped him into a keen observer and an accomplished intelligence analyst,

offering valuable insights into regional security and strategy.

To understand the reason of tacit endorsement

ofPehalgamterrorist attacks by Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff General

AsimMunir, one must trace the ideological lineage back to Mohammad Ali

Jinnah.While speaking in Kanpur, he had declared “I am willing to let two crore

Muslims in India be “smashed” to liberate seven crore others” (in present day

Pakistan). This was a statement that exposed the transactional and sacrificial

nature of Pakistan’s founding ideology. The statement reveals a fundamental

truth that the vision of Pakistan was never about safeguarding all Muslims but

about elevating a privileged class under the pretext of Islamic unity.

Pakistan continues to treat Indian Muslims, including Kashmiri

Muslims, as mere instruments in its geopolitical game. Every provocation, from

cross-border infiltration to high-profile terror attacks like the one in

Pahalgam, is less about protecting Kashmiri rights and more about reigniting a

partition-era validation that Pakistan’s existence was necessary. The Pakistani

elite has never truly accepted Indian Muslims as equals in faith or cause. They

are only remembered as useful cannon fodder for Pakistan’s narrative of Islamic

victimhood and strategic grievance.

The terror attack in Pahalgam is a continuation of Pakistan’s

long history of sacrificing the Kashmiris for its ideological struggle. In

1947, tribal lashkars sent by Pakistan looted, raped, and murdered

indiscriminately the local Muslims as well. In 1965, Ayub Khan launched

Operation Gibraltar believing that disguised Pakistani troops would trigger a

mass uprising in the Valley. That uprising never came. Pakistan misjudged

Kashmiri sentiment again, and faced a full-scale war.

In 2025, Pahalgam represented a Kashmir that was healing.

Tourism was booming. Violence had declined. This emerging peace posed an

ideological threat to Pakistan. A Kashmir moving on from separatism weakens

Pakistan’s narrative of being the saviour of Muslims. The attack on Pahalgam

was not just an act of terror but a reaction to the Valley’s return to

normalcy. Pakistan struck not because Kashmir was burningbut because it was no

longer burning.In the decades that followed, from sponsoring militancy in

Kashmir, Kargil, Mumbai, Uri, Pulwama, the idea remained to provoke India,

ignite communal fires, and pretend to be the saviour of Muslims. But the mask

is wearing thin. Something has shifted, slowly, but irreversibly. India no

longer plays by Pakistan’s script.

Indian response to the Pahalgam attack, Operation Sindoor, has

been decisive. Initially it targeted terror camps without bombast or bravado.

This wasn’t just a tactical operation. It was a strategic message.

India’s approach wasdesigned not just to destroy terror

infrastructure, but to also impose costs on Pakistan’s military planners. It

continues to show them that the pain they are inflicting on India will be

returned manifold. It is punitive yet calibrated. It demonstrates that

deterrence lies not in loud threats, but in silent, measurable consequences.

While India chose

specific targets to make its point, Pakistan’s planners continues to provoke

communal passions within India by targeting civilians. This contrast between

surgical retaliation and ideological barbarityis the clearest indicator of the

two nations’ moral divergence.

From Nehruvian idealism toOp Sindoor, India has gradually

evolved. On this occasion, it blended diplomacy, deterrence, intelligence,

Kinetic and non-Kinetic means. More importantly, it has internalised the need

to insulate communal harmony from external provocation. That is what Pakistan’s

planners fear the most. Our weapons, as well as our unity.

Pakistan, in contrast, remains shackled to its past. With the

economy in tatters, IMF loans, and traditional allies hedging their bets, Munir

needed something and it could be anythingto divert public anger. Pahalgam was

his distraction. He hoped to ignite Hindu-Muslim riots across India,specially

post wakf bill. The leaders in Pakistan wanted to show their public that they

were the “chosen ones,” still upholding the legacy of a nation created in the

name of Islam.But his plan failed.

Operation Sindoor is not just a chapter. It is a marker of a

long campaign that will continue. India must remain vigilant, alert to new

provocations and emerging threats. And above all, we must resist the pressure

to respond in haste or hatred. The strength of our unity, the wisdom of our

restraint, and the precision of our response are our real weapons. And we must

continue to wield them with care. A united India, armed with strength and

purpose, is unstoppable. Our rise as a superpower is not a dream but our

destiny. No enemy, no terror, no force can stall it now.

Hindusthan Samachar / Abhishek Awasthi