In India, a nation always facing elections, everything is politics, whether it is a government decision or an incident or even a military operation. While the government feels it should be credited for everything, the opposition believes its role is to criticize, especially when it is taken advantage of. The game gets murkier when the most respected bastion of the nation, the armed forces, gets dragged into political battles. This is what happened pre- and post Operation Sindoor.

The government addressed an all-party meet after Pahalgam, where it discussed the incident and its proposed retaliation. The intent was to avoid being accused of security lapses which led to the incident. The opposition had little choice but to support the government as not doing so would invite the wrath of the public, already demanding retribution. Surprisingly, even today, not a single individual has been held responsible for the security lapse, not one head has rolled, despite the Lt Governor of J and K, Manoj Sinha, mentioning it was ‘undoubtedly a security failure.’ On the contrary, a security breach which stalled the PM’s convoy on a flyover in Punjab’s Ferozepur in early 2022 led to multiple investigative committees being formed by the state and Centre and concerned individuals suspended. Post Operation Sindoor the opposition was ignored. Their leaders were neither briefed nor taken into confidence on what happened. As with Balakote and the cross-border strike post Uri, the BJP exploited military successes for its own political advantage, comparing their offensive approach to those of previous governments. It coined the phrase ‘Ghar mein ghus ke Marange.’ While taking credit for decision-making is its right, its policy of exploiting the opposition led to further distancing between political blocs.........

© The Statesman