Government Must Realise: Discussing 'Operation Sindoor' Is Not A Sin

On July 29, finally, Operation Sindoor was debated in the Lok Sabha. The opposition parties had been demanding a special session of Parliament to discuss it since May 10. As expected, it was less of a parliamentary debate than predictable rhetoric at rival political public rallies.

The speech of the Leader of the Opposition (LoP), Rahul Gandhi, was preceded by that of his sister, Priyanka Gandhi. The LoP kept his arguments simple. He used information shared by the Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, in two interviews with international agencies on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on May 31.

General Chauhan broached the Pakistani allegation that they shot down a number of Indian Air Force jets as the 4-day war began on May 7. He conceded “there were losses” but explained that the eventual outcome mattered more than any single incident. He added that a tactical mistake was quickly rectified, and the Indian retaliation duly escalated, leading to Pakistan seeking a ceasefire.

Rahul Gandhi, using the Chauhan argument, alleged political interference compelled the Indian defence forces to fight with their hands tied behind their backs. Furthermore, he said, India has not forthrightly denied repeated claims by US president Donald Trump of having mediated the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, employing the threat of trade tariffs.

He quoted his grandmother Indira Gandhi’s defiance of the US during the 1971 India-Pakistan war, which led to the creation of Bangladesh and the division of Pakistan. He challenged Prime Minister Modi to similarly, in the House, call out the US president’s lies.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a spirited rebuttal, insisted that no world leader asked India to stop Operation Sindoor. He used the standard BJP ploy of alleging that the Congress party was “siding with Pakistan,” as well as speaking their language.

He ignored that Rahul Gandhi’s attack relied on the remarks of CDS Chauhan in Singapore. President Trump did not need to parley with PM Modi when his vice president and secretary of state were in touch with PM Modi and his external affairs minister, respectively.

However, Prime Minister Modi made an important point that Operation Sindoor demonstrated that India defied Pakistan’s nuclear blackmail. He recounted that when the US vice-president, JD Vance, during their phone conversation, warned that Pakistan was planning to escalate the conflict, implying possible use of nuclear weapons, he threatened even greater retaliation.

This is significant, as in the past whenever Pakistan wanted international intervention during India-Pakistan standoffs, it would start juggling its nuclear weapons. That would draw major international powers to the Indian doorstep seeking de-escalation.

Ukraine has demonstrated that military operations against a nuclear weapon-possessing state like Russia are possible, even over an extended period, if Russia’s existence or core interests or sovereignty are not threatened.

However, Gandhi correctly pointed out that the new doctrine, promising immediate retaliation for another terror attack, may be politically useful but is strategically risk-prone. For instance, any motivated jihadi, by becoming a suicide bomber, can start an Indo-Pak war. The control over regional stability and peace cannot be handed to one or more misguided individuals.

A fundamental issue in play is whether questioning by the BJP’s political opponents of elements of any military operation against Pakistan, or any other neighbour, makes them anti-national collaborators of that power. Similarly, the repeated claims by President Donald Trump of his successful mediation required a timely and non-cantankerous response from the government, rather than delving into real or fictional Nehruvian slip-ups.

Take the downing of Indian fighter jets. The government tried hard to bury the issue. The explanation that the CDS gave three weeks after the episode, or the Prime Minister addressing the issue even more belatedly, could have been shared sooner. Querying the government is necessary for determining whether the mistake was “tactical” or due to a human or equipment lapse. Those answers are critical to ensuring that it does not recur.

The examples from US military history demonstrate the need for a formal inquiry. The Bay of Pigs operation, led by 1400 Cuban exiles, failed to dethrone Cuban leader Fidel Castro in April 1961 at the beginning of the Kennedy presidency. President John F Kennedy ordered a reorganisation of the CIA following it.

Similarly, the Holloway Report examined the failure, during Jimmy Carter’s presidency, of Operation Eagle Claw on April 24, 1980, to rescue American hostages held in Teheran. Consequently, the US Department of Defense was thoroughly reorganised.

Once again, the Iran-Contra conspiracy was uncovered in 1986, involving the sale of weapons to Iran, despite an embargo, and the funnelling of the money to support the Contras in Nicaragua.

The Tower Commission was set up to investigate it. President Ronald Reagan, in his address to the nation, said, “You deserve the truth.” In none of these instances was the opposition painted as a foreign collaborator.

Contemporary Trumpian America may behave differently, as it is as prone to conspiracy theories as India’s BJP leaders. But an inquiry into suspected and alleged lapses is necessary to rectify weaknesses in the Indian defence forces or their equipment.

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The Indian government’s ad hoc method of acquiring French Rafale planes, including the role of an Indian business tycoon, needs investigation. In addition, the efficacy of Chinese military hardware and the Chinese role in assisting Pakistan in targeting Indian planes need closer examination.

In a democracy, military acquisitions and even operations, once over, cannot escape scrutiny. It is not a sin to discuss Operation Sindoor. The door to opacity and denial leads to ultimate failure.

KC Singh is former secretary, Ministry of External Affairs.