'Did You Even Think Of...': Dr S Jaishankar's 'Bahawalpur, Muridke' Poser To Opposition On Operation Sindoor

Speaking in the Lok Sabha on Operation Sindoor debate, Dr S Jaishankar said that India won big in the UN Security Council when the global body condemned the Pahalgam terror attack despite Pakistan having its member state in current tenure.

Minister of External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar on Monday lashed out at opposition members for questioning the success of Operation Sindoor, especially when the Pahalgam attackers were not tracked down and eliminated. Speaking in the Lok Sabha during the Operation Sindoor debate, Dr Jaishankar said that India clearly told partner countries that it's exercising its right to defend against terrorist attacks. He also questioned the opposition members whether they can imagine attacking Bahawalpur and Muridke terror bases inside Pakistan during their tenure.  

"Which one of you imagined that Bahawalpur and Muridke would be brought down the way it was..." said Dr S Jaishankar. The EAM also said that the satellite pictures of the Pakistani air bases are available on the internet for everyone to see.

Dr Jaishankar said that it was important to send a clear, strong and resolute message after the Pahalgam attack. "Our red lines had been crossed. and we had to make it very apparent that there would be serious consequences as a result," said Jaishankar. He highlighted steps taken by India post the Pahalgam attack like putting the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 in abeyance with immediate effect until Pakistan credibly and irrevocably abjures its support for cross-border terrorism. The other measures included - the Integrated Check Post Attari was closed with immediate effect; Pakistani nationals who are travelling under SARC visa exemption scheme will no longer be allowed to do that; the Defence, Naval and Air advisors of the Pakistani High Commission would be declared Persona non grata and the overall strength of the High Commission would be brought down to 30 from the number of 55.

"It was very clear that, after the first set of steps approved by the Cabinet Committee on Security, India's response to the Pahalgam attack would not stop there. Our task from a diplomatic perspective, from a foreign policy approach, was to shape the global understanding of the Pahalgam attack. What we tried to do was to bring out to the international community Pakistan's long-standing use of cross-border terrorism. We highlighted the history of terrorism in Pakistan and how this particular attack was meant to target the economy of Jammu and Kashmir and to sow communal discord among the people of India," he said.

The Union Minister further said that the focus for India's diplomacy was the UN Security Council. "The challenge for us was that at this particular point, Pakistan is a member of the Security Council and we are not.....I am glad to say that if you look at the Security Council statement of 25th April, the members of the Security Council condemned in the strongest terms the terrorist attack. They affirmed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security. And most importantly, the Council underlined the need to hold the perpetrators, organisers, financers and sponsors of this reprehensible act of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice."