By P. Sudhir
In the early hours of May 7, Indian armed forces launched a military operation called Operation Sindoor, to target about nine sites in PoK and Pakistani territories. There is a consensus across the political spectrum on the need to respond to the barbaric killings of Indian tourists in Pahalgam. The evidence put on record by the Government of India and the representatives of the armed forces, proves the involvement of LeT which is an outfit directly handled by the Pakistani establishment. The LeT is already on the UN’s designated list of terrorist organisations.
While addressing the press conference, after the military operations, the foreign secretary pointed out that the attack in Pahalgam was intended to trigger a communal polarisation. While this is true, it also raises the question whether the Indian mainstream media and particularly the social media took into account this design. The answer is self-evident.
The absolute venom which continues to be spewed by an overwhelming section of the rightwing handles and posts is no less guilty. In fact, not only have they adopted a similar approach, but they appear to be equally determined on disrupting the unity of the people, like those who put in place the terror design in Pahalgam. Therefore, not just in optics, but we need solid back up action in detoxifying this media space. There is enough provision in the Constitution and the statutes in India to pursue this objective.
The Indian establishment has claimed that the military action was precise and targets were chosen to ensure that the situation does not escalate. In the contemporary world, the geopolitical ramifications of a full blown military conflict are so obviously disastrous. Therefore, we have to be extra careful because such actions are always fraught with the possibility of spiralling up and escalating. This must be avoided.
The objective should be cut out. India has to pile up more credible evidence to put further pressure, diplomatic and political, on the Pakistani establishment to proceed to bring the perpetrators of Pahalgam to book and mete out punitive action which will ensure that there is no repeat of similar terrorist strikes. The people in both countries do deserve peace and stability above anything else for prosperity and progress. India is a diverse society and unity in diversity is its greatest strength. It should remain that way. There should not be absolutely any action which disrupts and undermines the unity of our people, and identity based hatred should be refrained from. (IPA Service)
Pakistan PM Has Warned Of Revenge But Can He Retaliate Through Military Action Against India? 