Every democracy owes two debts to its soldiers. The first is to equip them well enough to fight. The second is to acknowledge them with honesty if they fall. The first secures the nation’s borders. The second safeguards its conscience. The recent inscription of the names of six military personnel who died during Operation Sindoor at the National War Memorial has reopened questions that extend beyond party politics.

The issue is not whether these brave men were honoured. They were. They received gallantry awards, their families were presented with the medals, and they have now found a place on the nation’s Roll of Honour. The question is why a clear, official acknowledgement of their sacrifice as casualties of Operation Sindoor came only a year later. The government’s defence deserves consideration. It has pointed out that the Director General of Military Operations referred to casualties in May 2025, gallantry awards were announced in August, and the memorial inscription followed established protocol.

It has also clarified that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s statement in Parliament that no Indian soldiers had........

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