Daily Times

Recent events amply prove that India’s ongoing policy of harming Pakistan’s international standing and its military power by accusing it of supporting terrorism is grossly wrong. Moreover, these events have also proven that the Jammu and Kashmir (JK) freedom struggle is indigenous and cannot be suppressed by the use of force. Besides, being a party to the JK dispute, Pakistan’s political, moral and diplomatic support of the people of JK cannot be curtailed by exerting military pressure on Pakistan.

Since long, to discourage Pakistan’s support of the Kashmiri freedom struggle, India has been threatening Pakistan with its military power. This is despite the fact that Pakistan is also quite militarily capable and also a nuclear power.

Ultimately, without conducting an investigation and collecting credible evidence, Indian Prime Minister (PM) Modi blamed Pakistan for the Pulwama attack and signaled to punish it through military action. In response, Pakistani PM Imran Khan offered India Pakistan’s full cooperation in the investigation to pinpoint the attackers. PM Imran Khan also asked India to start a dialogue with Pakistan to resolve bilateral disputes.

Despite Pakistan’s assurance of cooperation and offers for dialogue, Modi was bent on proving India’s so called military superiority over Pakistan. This was also meant to boost his vote bank for the upcoming Indian General Elections scheduled in April-May 2019. Under this notion, for the last four years, the Modi regime’s foreign policy was also focused towards isolating Pakistan internationally and undermining its military potential, by constantly accusing it of supporting terrorism. Regardless, New Delhi has failed in this regard.

The world’s major powers should come forward and diffuse the tense situation between India and Pakistan and compel India to end its anti-Pakistan militarism

Blaming Pakistan for the Pulwama attack, Modi had ordered India’s aircrafts to cross the Line of Control (LOC) and punish Pakistan. At 3:00 AM on February 26, 2019, four Indian fighter planes crossed the LOC to carry out their mission, but found themselves surrounded by Pakistani aircrafts. When challenged by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) fighter planes, the Indian aircrafts offloaded their ammunition on a plane ground in the Jaba area of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), about three kilometres from the LOC and fled back to India.

Although Indian media had published and aired a well made story that Indian jets had bombed a so called terrorist camp near Balakot town in the Khyber Pakhtunkha province of Pakistan. Of course India’s claim was falsified when ISPR released photographs of the actual area and when Pakistani and international media visited the site to witness that the area was located just 4 kms away from the LOC and was nothing but bare ground. But the fact remains that by crossing the LOC, Indian planes had violated Pakistan’s sovereignty and the Pakistan Government was forced to avenge the violation.

On the morning of February 27, 2019, when Pakistani air force jets were hitting some targets in India across the LOC, two Indian jets again crossed the LOC and Pakistani planes successfully hit those jets. As a consequence, one Indian jet crashed into the AJK area and the pilot, who had ejected himself out of the aircraft, was arrested by Pakistan Army personnel. The other Indian aircraft fell into Indian Occupied Kashmir (IOK) and its pilot was killed. After this action, PM Imran Khan again offered India to hold a dialogue to resolve the issues, stressing that the two nuclear armed neighbours should avoid war and give peace a chance.

However, the Modi team remained bent on displaying India’s aspired military superiority over Pakistan. Hence there is a danger that India will conduct further small scale offensive actions which will be bitterly contested by Pakistan. And, as a consequence, India might resort to a limited war, which it also cannot win as Pakistan’s armed forces are quite capable and a limited war will be easier for Pakistan to fight successfully, as compared to total war. Hence, India will be further embarrassed. Sadly, such a situation raises the danger of total war, involving the use of nuclear weapons.

Therefore, in view of the above discussed situation, good sense should prevail in India and its leadership should recognize that 1971 is long gone, and now India does not possess its wishful military supremacy over nuclear armed Pakistan. Therefore, India had best decide to start a dialogue with Pakistan to resolve the bilateral issues and live in peace. Also, the world’s major powers should come forward and diffuse the tense situation between India and Pakistan and compel India to end its anti-Pakistan militarism and resolve bilateral issues and disputes with Pakistan through bilateral discussions.

The writer is an ex-Army Colonel, a former Research Fellow of Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI), Islamabad and Senior Research Fellow, Strategic Vision Institute, Islamabad

Published in Daily Times, March 3^rd 2019.