By Dr. Gyan Pathak
The days immediately following the launch of Operation Sindoor began with certain advantage to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his party BJP, both within India and abroad. However, the advantage soon started weakening with their launch of Sindoor Politics that is now facing open political resistance within the country. As for post-conflict diplomacy, India has been showing signs of losing control over its dominant narrative against Pakistan, that too has started attracting strong and open criticism.
Operation Sindoor was seen be common people as India’s act against Pakistan sponsored terror in the aftermath of Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 people have lost their lives. Though the attack was on communal lines, it failed to ignite communal passions among people within the country. There was general unity, of people, and among political parties. The lapses on part of the government, such as failure in preventing the terror incident and inability of the government in nabbing the terrorist were ignored.
It was initially advantage PM Narendra Modi and BJP. The entire opposition supported the government to form multi-party parliamentary delegations and send them abroad to expose Pakistan’s complicity in act for terror in India. However, PM Narendra Modi did not reciprocate the opposition’s goodwill gesture, but played politics against them. Without taking into confidence the leaders of the opposition political parties, the government picked up their leaders, which created rift among opposition political parties. Controversies created within the Congress, TMC, and Shiv-Sena (UBT) were case in point. Even within India bloc – leaders of parties criticized each other – such as we saw in case of Sharad Pawar and Sanjay Raut. All these were advantage PM Narendra Modi, and the opposition still tolerated.
Then PM Narendra Modi and BJP leaders started Sindoor politics in poll bound states in Bihar and West Bengal. Roadshows were organized by them, and they used such a language that smacked communal politics. The word Pakistan was used implying Muslims, and Opposition political parties were portrayed as Muslim supporters implying Pakistan supporters. It was clearly Sindoor politics launched against the opposition political parties.
A ‘vicious’ campaign was made from PM Narendra Modi’s rally in Alipurduar against West Bengal government for narrow power gains, alleged Mamata. “Didi opposed Operation Sindoor for vote bank,” Union Home Minister Amit Shah slammed Mamata Banerjee. PM had earlier cited the Murshidabad riots.
It is our country, and we will protect it anyway, said Mamata Banerjee, while exposing PM Narendra Modi and the BJP, who were trying to play Sindoor politics, behind the Operation Sindoor, which will not be tolerated. She challenged PM Narendra Modi to call for immediate election in West Bengal. TMC has slammed BJP’s Sindoor politics, while supporting Operation Sindoor. BJP’s initial unopposed advantage is now being opposed publicly.
In response to Amit Shah’s accusation that West Bengal government supported illegal Bangladeshi infiltration, TMC reminded him that managing country’s border is the job of Border Security Force (BSF) which works under central government. TMC’s minister in the state, Chandrima Bhattacharya even called for Shah’s resignation over preventing terror attacks.
As for the India’s control over the narrative relating to Kashmir, Pakistan sponsored terrorism, and Pakistan, many things are actually going against PM Narendra Modi. The very first thing that went against PM Narendra Modi, was the announcement of ceasefire by US President Donald Trump. He has been insisting that it was his mediation that achieved the ceasefire, between India and Pakistan. PM Narendra Modi’s silence over it is mysterious, while other officials are denying mediation, against the Simla Agreement which provides for only bilateral resolution. Why PM Modi should allow internationalization of Kashmir issue? People are increasingly asking, now openly.
Earlier, the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had asked how much loss was incurred by the Indian Air Force during the conflict due to message of attack was sent to Pakistan before the attack? BJP had criticized him, and even branded him as Pakistan’s poster boy. Nevertheless, it was a strategic mistake of Modi government to inform Pakistan about its impending attack. Congress, and several other opposition parties and leaders have started criticizing the Modi government raising several lapses and demanding a special session of the parliament to discuss the matters.
Now India’s Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan has admitted in Singapore of certain losses, which was promptly criticized by geostrategist Brahma Chellaney, as “poor public diplomacy.”“The fact that the Singapore forum was also attended by Pakistan’s chairman of the joint chiefs of staff only helped to hyphenate India with Pakistan,” Chellaney noted.
“The Modi government needlessly dispatched India’s Chief of Defense Staff to a forum in Singapore, where he handed a propaganda victory to Pakistan by acknowledging Indian warplane losses in a Reuters interview on the sidelines,” Chellaney wrote on X. He warned that India’s strategic communication continues to undermine battlefield gains.
“Modi has staged roadshows to cement the narrative of a decisive Indian victory… However, Trump’s repeated claims that he stopped the military hostilities by threatening India with trade sanctions have undercut Modi’s efforts. Now, the Indian Chief of Defense Staff — through a media interview in Singapore — has further complicated Modi’s attempt to control the post-conflict narrative,” Chellaney has said.
Now probing fingers are being raised against PM Narendra Modi led Centre’s failures and intentions of the BJP on several counts – the terror attack on April 22 in Pahalgam, government’s failure in preventing, it, failure in nabbing the terrorists, lapses during Operation Sindoor and ceasefire, playing politics with opposition during formation of all-party delegation, and the recent launch of Sindoor politics.
Emergence of such sharp criticism against BJP leadership in general and PM Narendra Modi in particular is an unexpected event within a very short span of about one month of time , may ultimately go against their political fortunes. (IPA Service)
