India was in a quandary as to how to respond to the apparent failure of ‘Operation Sindoor’ barely after six months when terrorist explosions in the populous areas of national capital of India on November 10 this year were found to be masterminded by a network of professionals. ‘Operation Sindoor’ was conceived as a long-term retaliation strategy against terrorism, it continued to operate theoretically even while it was paused in terms of cross-border operations. But the operation starkly failed to prevent such kinds of malign activities in India through consistent and timely intelligence and policing operations. Management of popular outrage in the aftermath of blasts was a challenge considering Assembly elections in Bihar and bypolls in several other states. Further, India’s relations with the US were showing the signs of improvements since it plunged rapidly following the ‘Operation Sindoor’.
The Delhi explosions clearly demonstrated how the narrative of success of the ‘Operation Sindoor’ as the one setting a new normal for its precision and massive toll on terrorist lives and infrastructure overpowered the long-term imperative of strengthening intelligence, surveillance and other preventive measures that could forestall terrorist attacks in the first place. Involvement of Indian professionals who have been part of the Indian Association of Universities which later suspended Al Falah University in masterminding the terrorist acts on the Indian territory based on a long-time plan gathering unprecedented amounts of explosives point to clear failure of New Delhi’s intelligence and policing operations.
It also points to the sordid facts that the Indian intelligence and policing mechanisms have failed to build robust civilian networks with multitude of Indian sympathisers in the Kashmir valley who could provide clues and information on such kinds plans.
India’s Cautious Approach
Following the explosions in Delhi, India maintained caution and did not name and blame Pakistan nor did it define it as cross-border terrorism. The new doctrine that emerged in the post-Pahalgam tragedy – any act of terrorism against India would be considered an act of war which implicated involvement of Pakistan in the terrorist acts by Islamic fundamentalists was suddenly put to a pause as if this could lead to sweeping generalisation. For a number of reasons, India plausibly maintained restraint such as it has had a tough time to deal with the Trump administration’s cosy relations with Pakistan that developed in the backdrop of the operation sindoor. India had to issue official statements to refute President Trump’s several attempts to take credit for ending the conflict and exchange of fires between the two nuclear powers of South Asia – India and Pakistan that led to a downturn in Indo-US relations. The American tariff war against India also took the bilateral relations to an all-time low.
Rising expectations and success narratives emanating from the ‘Operation Sindoor’ would have certainly generated inexorable pressure on the Indian government to take decisive and more destructive action against Islamabad had it blamed Pakistan or use of Pakistani soil for these blasts. Such kinds of actions would be difficult to contemplate without necessary readiness of the Indian armed forces. India, by referring to the blasts as a cross-border phenomenon would have signalled that the pressures against the terrorists that India created through its operations collapsed within a span of six months. It would have further indicated the frequent failures of Indian intelligence to intercept cross-border terrorism. By defining these blasts as anti-national activities, the Indian government, nonetheless, tried to lessen such mounting pressures on the civilian administration as well as on its military and intelligence wings.
On the other side, India earned American praise for its restraint. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praising New Delhi’s restraint and demonstration of professionalism in handling the probe into the blast remarked: “the Indians need to be commended. They’ve been very measured, cautious and very professional in how they’re carrying out this investigation. That investigation continues. It clearly was a terrorist attack. It was a car loaded with highly explosive materials that detonated and killed a lot of people.”
Kashmir and its youth have come under the focussed scanner, unprecedented scrutiny and tightening surveillance mechanisms of Indian government following the involvement of Kashmiri doctors in these acts of terrorism. Indian media has coined a new concept to define this form of terrorism as ‘White Collar Terrorism’. While this would heighten predicaments for innocent Kashmiris, caution against highhandedness must be maintained. The territory has already sacrificed its constitutional freedom in 2019 through the amendment of article 370. After being converted into a union territory it has been brought under the direct and far greater control of the Indian government. If the government machineries of India are not cautiously used in the sensitive territory, people who are sympathetic to India will feel alienated. The valley would be ever more susceptible to terrorism.