Latest news with #Balakote
Hans India
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Hans India
Playing with blood of Indians will cost Pakistan dearly: PM
New Delhi/Bikaner: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday asserted that the country's enemies have learnt what happens when 'sindoor' becomes gunpowder, and lauded India's armed forces for creating such a trap that Pakistan was forced to go down on its knees. In his first public address in Rajasthan after Operation Sindoor that was launched in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, the prime minister slammed Pakistan, and said in response to the attack on April 22, 'we destroyed nine biggest terror hideouts in 22 minutes'. 'The world and the enemies of the country have seen what happens when 'sindoor' turns into 'barood' (gunpowder),' he said at the public meeting in Palana in Bikaner, which shares border with Pakistan. 'Ab toh Modi ki naso mein lahu nahi garam sindoor beh raha hai (Not blood but sindoor runs in Modi's veins),' he said, adding, Pakistan will have to pay a heavy price for every terrorist attack. He said India's response to the terror attack was not a game of vengeance but a 'new form of justice' and there will be no trade or talk with Pakistan, there will be talk only about Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. In a stern message to Pakistan, he said India is not going to be scared by nuclear threats and if there is a terrorist attack on the country then it will give a befitting reply. He said the game of Pakistan of state and non-state actors will not work anymore. Lauding the armed forces for carrying out Operation Sindoor, he said 'Our government gave free hand to all three armed forces. Together they created such a trap that Pakistan was forced to go down on its knees'. Noting that Pakistan had tried to target the Nal air base in Bikaner but could not cause any damage to it, he said in contrast 'No one knows when Pakistan's Rahimyar Khan air base will open again. It is in ICU. The attack has destroyed it'. 'Pakistan can never win a direct fight against India. Whenever there is a direct fight, Pakistan has to face defeat again and again. That is why Pakistan has made terrorism a weapon to fight against India,' he said. Modi recalled his public rally in Rajasthan's Churu after the 2019 Balakote airstrike, and said he had then stated that, 'Saugandh mujhe is mitti ki, mein desh nahi jhukne dunga, mein desh nahi mitne dunga (he had taken a vow that he would not let the country down)'. 'Today, from the land of Rajasthan, I want to say to the countrymen that those who had set out to erase sindoor have been wiped out. Those who shed the blood of Hindustan have paid for every drop of it. Those who were proud of their weapons are now buried under a pile of rubble,' he said. Referring to the 2016 surgical strikes and the Balakote air strike, Modi said earlier India carried out attacks by entering into their houses but now the attack was directly on their chest. He said Pakistan used to spread terror, kill innocent people and create an atmosphere of fear in India. 'Now, Modi, the servant of 'Maa Bharti', is standing here with his head held high. Modi's mind remains cool, but his blood is hot,' he said. 'And if Pakistan continues to export terrorists, it will have to beg for every penny. Pakistan will not get India's rightful share of water. Playing with the blood of Indians will cost Pakistan dearly. This is India's resolve and no power in the world can shake us from this resolve,' he said. Modi also spoke about the multi-party delegations being sent abroad to highlight India's resolve to confront state-sponsored terrorism emanating from Pakistan and assert its right to self-defence following Operation Sindoor. 'To expose the truth, our all party delegations are reaching all over the world. The real face of Pakistan will be shown to the whole world,' he said.
United News of India
09-05-2025
- Politics
- United News of India
Mehbooba calls for dialogue, not military action
Srinagar, May 9 (UNI) Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Friday made a fervent appeal to the leadership of both India and Pakistan urging them to de-escalate rising tensions through dialogue rather than resorting to military action. 'A lot of blood has been shed. Now it should stop here," Mehbooba said while addressing a press conference. 'Military is no solution. It can address the symptoms, but it does not treat the root of the disease.' The Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba said that situation between Indian and Pakistan is deteriorating. She expressed deep concern for the civilians — particularly women, children, and the elderly — who are bearing the brunt of cross-border skirmishes and the worst suffers were the border residents. 'People are being displaced from their homes. Many of our people have been displaced, including children and women,' she said. In a strong plea to both New Delhi and Islamabad, Mehbboba said, 'There is a need for immediate and urgent restraint to de-escalate the tension.' She warned that the current escalation risked further civilian casualties, stressing that those suffering on the ground are not responsible for the conflict. 'The innocent civilians who are being killed on both sides… the civilians on our border, in Jammu and Kashmir — they did not start this war. This war is not of their choosing,' PDP chief said. She appealed to the leadership and people of both nations to show wisdom and compassion, adding, 'The minds of both countries must work seriously toward de-escalating the situation.' She said India is emerging as a global power and Pakistan is facing serious internal challenges and these realities call for maturity, not military escalation. 'The efforts of both countries should be focused on political intervention,' she stated. Mehbooba pointed to the post-Pulwama Balakote airstrikes as an example. 'So what happened after that? And now Pahalgam has happened. What changed? What is happening today?' she asked, underlining the futility of repeating past patterns. In a choked voice, she urged both countries' leaderships to prioritize the lives of innocent people. 'Stop these attacks for God's sake. Our children... it's the age for them to be playing,' she said. 'I saw the photo of that child — he was playing in the same T-shirt,' she added, referring to a heart-wrenching image from Poonch where 16 civilians were killed in cross border shelling on Wednesday. 'As our Prime Minister Modi ji said during the Ukraine crisis, the era of war is truly over, then now is the time for political intervention — to resolve issues through dialogue. ." she said. Mehbooba urged both Prime Ministers to step back from confrontation and initiate communication. UNI MJR PRS
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First Post
30-04-2025
- Politics
- First Post
Strike or strategise: India options between escalation and endgame
The sheer brutality and the message of 'tell Modi', preceded by a rant from Gen Asim Munir on Balochistan, Kashmir and the two-nation theory, are all aimed at pushing India to precipitate action; however, India must relook at its objectives and strategies before finalising any action read more As more visuals and details come in about the Pahalgam attack, public anger is growing, and with it, a demand for stern action against Pakistan. Social media warriors demand immediate action, the bloodier the better, with comments ranging from hitting army installations to an assassination campaign. Overall, however, there is agreement that matters cannot be allowed to continue as they are. The difficulty, of course, is in deciding exactly what India can do realistically and with what precise objective. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Bombing and air attacks For the first , the popular demand for an immediate bombing of terrorist and army installations to smithereens. But here's the point. Pakistan has learnt from Balakote and is likely to remain on an 'alert status', at least over the next few months. Beyond that it becomes prohibitively expensive. Radar, missiles and aircraft can't be kept on standby forever. So point one. It can be done, but at a time and place of our choosing. In such an attack, India could use swarm kamikaze drones to hit targets like the Lashkar headquarters near Lahore. It could even use the stand-off BrahMos missiles. Its 290 km range can easily reach the targets which are just 50-60 odd km away from the border. But Pakistan will retaliate with its own drones – and it has many, including . While their munitions capability is uncertain, any such attack is an entry point for open war and subsequent escalation. That's an expensive business. Available data based on the 1971 war costs, including subsequent inflation, is Rs 27 crore per hour. That was in 1990, and a presumption of victory. Given the lessons of Ukraine, it could be a lot more. That's the end of your economic trajectory, which lies at the core of strategic plans. Hunting down the terrorists and the 'unimaginable' price The question remains: what concrete actions can India take to align with the Prime Minister's resolve to punish terrorists and their backers, pursuing them to the 'ends of the earth' and making them pay an 'unimaginable price'? In the first is the call to all friends to cooperate in hunting down terrorists and friends. That will come, it is certain, especially as 26/11 accused Tahawwur Rana starts talking. Then there's the second threat. That could include the hiving away of a large part of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir so that terror camps are shut down for good. It also gives us access to Central Asia. But that would require a clear intimation to the Chinese, given that one reason for Galwan was Chinese apprehension of the effects of Article 370 on its own slice of the original state of Kashmir. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD So Beijing has to not just be confided in but may include virtually relinquishing your claim for good. It would also result possibly in a threat or a complete cut-off of the main Karakoram Highway, the lifeline of CPEC (China-Pakistan Economic Corridor). But the bottom line is this. Keeping our Kashmir happy is difficult enough and requires security forces by the thousands. Now imagine controlling an ethnically diverse, mountainous territory. It's simply not worth it; the larger risk is getting bogged down in a Ukraine-type war. However, now that the Shimla Agreement has been suspended, the Line of Control turns back into a ceasefire line and is open to any amount of 'corrections'. A thin slice of territory inwards to seal the border is highly possible that eliminates any further Kargils. But the 'unimaginable price'? It's already in the works. Ending the Indus Water Treaty doesn't mean stopping water – it can't be done for now. What could be in the works is the delay of release, which upsets the whole sowing season, which begins at the end of April. The waters sustain 23 per cent of agricultural needs and 68 per cent of rural livelihoods. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Add to this that the Pakistan army has just taken over 45,000 acres for 'corporate farming' in three districts of Punjab. That's the end of that ongoing fight between Punjab and Sindh over sharing of waters. This is far worse than war. The last question as to our objective. That is clearly to stop Pakistan's terrorism sponsorship once and for good. But remember that this malign activity rests on its nuclear capability. It's no surprise that terrorism skyrocketed after the 1998 nuclear tests. One way is a campaign to mark Pakistan as a terrorist state with crippling sanctions. China will not join that, but neither will it hurry to provide it an alternate source of financing. A second way is to support Baloch and Pashtun insurgencies with financial support – they have enough arms and manpower – with the injunction that this aid would stop if they hit civilians. A Pakistan that loses its missile testing sites and storage facilities in Balochistan and its uranium mines in the tribal areas would be hugely weaker. That might also mean war, unless this effort includes a call to others to join in. The blunt truth is that dialogue, offers of trade and cooperation have been rejected. Nothing has worked. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Finally, study the attack itself. The sheer brutality and the message of 'tell Modi', preceded by a rant from Gen Asim Munir on Balochistan, Kashmir and the two-nation theory, are all aimed at pushing India to precipitate action. What Delhi has done so far is to resist this, even while putting a stranglehold on Pakistan's very survival. Water is the key, and Pakistan knows it. Those crying about a 64-year-old treaty that held, as against 70 years of terror, had better know that India held to the treaty even after the Pulwama attacks, even sharing data. Apparently the language of decency doesn't work. Time to take the other road. The writer is a Distinguished Fellow at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies, New Delhi. She tweets @kartha_tara. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstpost's views.
