Operation Sindoor: Why it is different from earlier strikes against Pakistan

It’s not the first time that Pakistan’s terror infrastructure has been struck, but Operation Sindoor has features which indicate that red lines are shifting. (Representative image)

Nine locations hosting terror infrastructure in Pakistan were struck by the Indian military on May 6 in the pursuit of justice for the cold-blooded murder of 26 unarmed people near Pahalgam, J&K, in April. The strike by the military was a foregone conclusion as the political leadership made it clear that the murders will not go unanswered. It’s not the first time that Pakistan’s terror infrastructure has been struck, but Operation Sindoor has features which indicate that red lines are shifting.

The last major strike on terror infrastructure in Pakistan took place in February 2019 when Balakot in Khyber Pakhtunkwa province was targeted by the Indian Air Force. It was first time since the 1971 war, when the Pakistan army surrendered, that IAF had crossed the Line of Control (LoC).

Executing Operation Sindoor, the military struck locations in the Punjab province, Pakistan’s core in every way. Bahawalpur in southern Punjab, HQ of Jaish-e-Mohammed, was one of the locations targeted. Another location in Punjab that was targeted is Muridke, which has a large presence of L-e-T.

The difference between LoC, which marks the de facto boundary in Kashmir, and Punjab is that the latter is a settled International Border. Simply put, the geographical arc of strikes against terror infrastructure has expanded. It’s a clear message that no location in Pakistan is off limits when it comes to retaliation.

One of the highlights of the 1971 war was that all three arms of the Indian military took part and worked in cohesion to achieve a total victory. The government has said that Operation Sindoor saw the participation of all three arms. It augurs well for integrated theatre commands which is the long-term goal of the military so as to make the most effective use of its collective assets.

The response from India may have been inevitable but there was simply no indication of the scale of response through large troop movements such as repositioning of a strike corp. On the Pakistan side, there was considerable troop movement as they prepared for a response.

India has chosen a path of restraint- none of the strikes during Operation Sindoor were aimed at Pakistan’s military. It was limited to terror infrastructure. After the strikes, the government in its media statement clearly indicated that India wishes to avoid going up the escalatory ladder.

Prior to strike, there has been noticeable international support to India to retaliate as it thought fit- China being the notable exception. Simultaneously, most major powers did hope that matters would not escalate beyond a point as the world’s already facing the challenge of coping with protracted conflict in West Asia and Ukraine, with the possibility of trade war still there.

India has battled a Pakistan sponsored war in J&K for over three decades. During this phase a significant development has been underway which has put both countries on different economic trajectories.

In 1991, the year India embarked on its economic liberalisation program, Pakistan’s per capita GDP was higher than that of India. According to World Bank data, Pakistan’s per capita GDP in 2023 was $1,365, while that of India was 82 percent higher at $2,481. The economic trajectories of the two countries have influenced strategic choices.

India is on its way to becoming the world’s third largest economy, and has just concluded a benchmark Free Trade Agreement with the U.K, which is the most significant one it has reached since Brexit.

Pakistan, on the other hand, hurtles from one debt crisis to another, pleading for IMF bailouts. Simultaneously, it has all but become a colony of China. General Asim Munir may find it useful to reflect on the choices the two nations have made and the ongoing dilution of sovereignty Pakistan is experiencing.