GREAT PUNCH
| Date :22-Oct-2019 |
THERE should be no doubt about the great power the Indian Army packed in its latest punch delivered straight on Pakistan’s face on October 20 (Sunday) when it eliminated at least 35 militants plus 8-10 Pakistani soldiers in artillery fire on 3-4 terror launch pads in Occupied Kashmir. The special merit of this strike was that it was a real-time hit back by the Indian Army in response to Pakistani shelling, when the political leadership could not be contacted for a green signal to mount a well-modulated shelling. This freedom that the Army enjoys in matters of tactical response to any incursion is actually the crux of India’s strategic superiority, which the Sunday strike proved beyond doubt. Yet, Army chief General Bipin Rawat was candid in asserting that the military and political leaderships of the country worked in a fine tandem. This also speaks highly of the successful method the political and Army leaderships have evolved of late -- proved by Uri and Balakot strikes.
The confidence with which General Rawat shared the details with the media showed the kind of clarity Indian security doctrine has developed in recent times. This is no mean an achievement for a country that often suffered earlier from lack of courage on part of the political leadership to permit full-blast response to Pakistani overtures. Because the Government is all willing to go extra distance in teaching Pakistan tough lessons in real-time, the military also feels strong and confident that there would not be a let down, which used to be the experience on many occasions in the past. In fact, the trouble in Kashmir became a chronic affair only because the political leadership capitulated way back in 1948 when the Indian Army was succeeding in throwing the Pakistanis out of the Indian territory.
It was at that time that the Indian leadership had halted the advancing Indian troops and approached the United Nations under a provision that dealt with disputes. In a minute, Kashmir became a disputed area, giving Pakistan sort of a foot in the door, an adversarial locus standi. India suffered for seventy years on account of that one mistake, that one thoughtless action. The Tangdhar action of Sunday highlighted all these facets of the changed paradigm of India’s security policy. There was no time wasted by the Indian troops at the Line of Control (LoC) as the Pakistanis started an unprovoked firing from the other side. The Indian response was real-time and also very precise, as if our troops had been planning such an attack for quite some time. In other words, it also proves the high levels of preparedness the Indian Defence Forces have achieved over time.
On quite many occasions in the past few years, the Indian Defence Forces have shown to the world how precise and how decisive they can be when it is time to hit back. The Tangdhar strike was actually a small event that, however, could not be categorised as ‘local action’. For, it will have far-reaching repercussions in teaching Pakistan one more no-nonsense lesson, and also showcasing to the world India’s battle-readiness -- mentally and militarily. It is unfortunate that Pakistan does not understand all this, even though it is getting pushed to the brink every passing day. Despite the fact that intellectual class and some sections of the media are telling the Pakistani Government to exercise restraint and responsibility, Islamabad is in no mood to listen to words of caution and wisdom. Thus, it appears on a sure way to doom in a few years to come. That an unprecedented economic bankruptcy is daring Pakistan in the face, is one part of the story, but that an intellectual and spiritual bankruptcy also is confronting Islamabad is another part of the story.