Indian special forces crossing the Line of Control in helicopters and attacking terrorist launchpads across Pakistan-occupied Kashmir in a pinpointed manner in the early hours of Thursday is being celebrated across the nation, and across mainstream political opinion. This is for good reason. Over the past 15 years, it had become an article of faith with us that strategic restraint must be shown in the face of the most galling terrorist strikes, such as the one on the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly in Srinagar, on our Parliament, and the city of Mumbai. All these were tolerated for various reasons, some of which arose from presumed considerations of geopolitics. As a result, Pakistan had come to expect that India would make diplomatic noises but its guns wouldn’t pop. Therefore it inferred that the use of terrorist proxies was a safe tactic which imposed no costs upon it.
Its backers like China with a straight face asked for proof at the UN when it came to punishing terror masterminds. They too realised that India was being hemmed in by geopolitics and would not really respond. India’s old approach is now a thing of the past. That’s the realisation that all of Pakistan must now contend with — its officially-nurtured terrorist outfits, their military and ISI promoters and handlers, as well as the politicians who run to do the bidding of the military to stay in power or to gain it. It is evident that India is prepared for Pakistani retaliation whatever form that might take, although in order to save face before their people the Pakistanis have officially said there was no commando raid, and that there had only been an exchange of fire at the LoC, which is pretty normal stuff. The geopolitical consideration which no longer operates is that the United States has ended its combat mission in Afghanistan and has very few forces left in that country. The US used to counsel India restraint as it was worried that if Pakistani forces were diverted from the Afghan border, where terrorists were being fought, and moved east to meet the Indian challenge, the fight against terrorism may suffer.
These considerations no longer exist. Pakistan, in any case, was being seen as a duplicitous ally in the war on terrorism, as the world knows. Therefore, the regional strategic dynamics have altered completely for India. Pakistan and its friends might as well take note and cease with their redundant counsel. They are also invited to take note of the fact that PoK is Indian territory under illegal occupation, and this country commits no illegality when it sends its security forces to meet an expediency. In this case, as I&B minister of state Rajyavardhan Rathore noted, it was an anti-terror operation, not a military one.
