SRINAGAR: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday informed Parliament that India launched a coordinated military operation destroying 11 Pakistani airbases following the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people, including 25 Indian nationals and one Nepali.
Speaking during a debate on national security, Shah detailed the government’s response after the April 22 attack. “On April 30, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) decided to suspend the Indus Water Treaty and expel all Pakistani citizens residing in India. It was resolved that the CRPF, Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police would deal effectively with the terrorists and their handlers,” said the Home Minister.
Condemning the opposition for criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement on the Pahalgam incident made during a Bihar rally, Shah asserted that “this was a time for unity, not politics.”
He then described Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 as a retaliatory military action. “The Indian Army was ordered to respond to Pakistan. Eleven of their airbases were destroyed — including Noor Khan Chaklala, Murid, Sugurdha, Rafiqui, Rahim Khan, Jacobabad, Sukur, and Bholari. We also took down six radar systems and surface-to-air weapons,” said Shah.
Shah stressed that India had deliberately chosen not to target civilian infrastructure, despite Pakistan attempting to strike civilian areas. “Their offensive capabilities were completely neutralised. Pakistan had no choice but to surrender,” he added.
He further stated that at 5 PM on May 10, following a call from Pakistan’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO), India ceased its attacks. Addressing criticism that India should have pushed further militarily, Shah responded: “Every war has a civilian cost. We remembered 1951 and 1971. Such decisions must weigh human consequences.”
Revisiting history, Shah blamed India’s first Prime Minister for the unresolved Kashmir issue. “Pakistan-occupied Kashmir was handed over due to Jawaharlal Nehru’s decisions. It was never demanded back in the Simla Agreement,” he said.
