- Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the Pahalgam terror attack as a personal tragedy
- He paid tribute to the bravery and courage of the armed forces involved in Operation Sindoor
- The Prime Minister dedicated the operation to every mother, sister, and daughter of the nation
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday made a personal loss of heart to describe Monday's terror attack at Pahalgam in which 26 lives were lost. In his speech, speaking to the nation, he dedicated the courage and gallantry of the personnel who were involved in “Operation Sindoor” to the entire nation's daughters, sisters, and mothers.
He said that terror groups must be seen to endure the price of targeting and attacking Indian women, represented by the “Sindoor”. Modi praised the military troops, intelligence agencies, and scientists for their concerted efforts that resulted in the success of the operation.
Giving Pakistan a blunt and straight message, the Prime Minister mentioned that "terror and talks cannot go together, terror and trade cannot go together, and water and blood cannot flow together." This was a clear indication that India will hold back from Indus Waters Treaty as a measure to react against the attack. He called Pakistan a living proof of state-backed terrorism and warned that the country will one day be overwhelmed by the same terror network it has nurtured.
Pointing towards India's robust anti-terror policy, Modi said this is not an era of terror, no more than it is an era of war, but he emphasized India's readiness to use its strength to establish peace when necessary.
Earlier in the day, the Prime Minister had chaired a top-level security meeting attended by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, the chiefs of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, and senior intelligence and foreign affairs officials. The gathering followed India's pinpoint strikes against nine terrorist bases in Pakistan on May 7, which was conducted in retaliation for the Pahalgam attack and led to over 100 terrorist deaths, according to reports.
In retaliation, Pakistan had flown drones and missiles into western India, which was successfully intercepted. India retaliated with a 90-minute precision strike that crippled 11 of Pakistan's vital airbases. Under heavy damage, Pakistan called for de-escalation, and a ceasefire deal was established with Indian consent after U.S. mediation. The ceasefire went into effect on Saturday afternoon, and no new hostilities were reported up until Sunday night. Later, 32 airports which had been closed due to tensions were reopened to civilian air traffic.
In a joint briefing by the Directorate General of Military Operations, Air Marshal A.K. Bharti explained that India's actions were only against terrorist hideouts. But Pakistan's open military assistance to these terrorist groups raised the conflict to a larger scale. India explained again that its actions were against terrorism and its infrastructure, not against the Pakistani military, which could have remained neutral but instead chose to aid terrorist groups, requiring a robust military response.
