Brig (retd) GB Reddi
A Veteran’s Anguished Wake-Up Call After Pahalgam
I write this not just as a soldier who gave 34 years of my life to the Indian Army — having fought in all four wars — but as a heartbroken Indian. An old man who has seen war, death, betrayal, and sacrifice. And today, I cannot remain silent.
On that blood-soaked morning in Pahalgam, 28 innocent Indian tourists were slaughtered. Not by “militants.” Not by some “unknown gunmen,” as our cowardly apologists like to say — but by terrorists, trained, armed, and unleashed by the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. This wasn’t a tragedy. It was an act of war.
Yet not a word. Not a single word of condemnation from India’s Opposition parties naming Pakistan. Rahul Gandhi won’t name them. Asaduddin Owaisi plays semantics. Mehbooba Mufti dares to talk of “healing.” Healing? What about justice? What about retribution?
Why is it so difficult for them to take the name of the enemy? Is it cowardice? Or worse — complicity?
The same Opposition that cannot defeat Narendra Modi electorally now seems to have taken to undermining India morally. Their silence is not neutrality — it is betrayal. While the world — from the United States and Russia to Israel and France, unequivocally called out Pakistan and stood by us, India’s own political class plays footsie with the narrative of our enemies.
Do they think Indians don’t see through this game? Do they believe the majority community — the Hindus, who have been at the receiving end of terror and appeasement for decades — are blind?
Let me put it bluntly. The rot began in 1947. Partition was meant to be on religious lines, and yet we kept the door open for those who would later question the very idea of India. We welcomed them with open arms. And for what? So that generations later, we could have elected representatives who speak the language of our enemies?
This isn’t about Muslims versus Hindus. This is about Indians versus those who refuse to stand with India in her darkest hour.
Even the Pakistan Army chief, just weeks ago, reiterated their doctrine of “bleeding India with a thousand cuts.” The ISI has always been the architect of this proxy war. Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammed — these aren’t rogue outfits. They are state-sponsored murder machines, proudly paraded by Rawalpindi.
And yet, when India bleeds, the Opposition loses its tongue.
Thankfully, the mood of the nation today is unforgiving. The anger is palpable. Retired officers like General Bakshi, Major Gaurav Arya, and countless other veterans have said it plainly: the time for restraint is over.
It is time for retribution.
I applaud the Cabinet Committee on Security for acting swiftly. NSA Ajit Doval, the Army and Air Chiefs, and the Defence Minister – all are in constant deliberation. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has flown back from the US, cutting her official trip short. This is the seriousness the moment demands.
But we must go further. Like Israel, like Russia, we must strike not just at the terrorists, but their handlers. Their enablers. Their headquarters. The Pakistan Army must not be allowed to hide behind the facade of plausible deniability any longer.
Target the ISI. Hit their camps. Cripple their military infrastructure. If the army chief of Pakistan is the architect of these attacks, then he must know: no one is safe when you spill Indian blood.
We are not the India of 1999 or 2008. We are not asking the world for justice — we are telling them we will deliver it ourselves.
This, Mr. Prime Minister, is your moment. The nation is with you. We veterans are with you. Every Indian with a beating heart and a spine is with you.
Send a message to Islamabad that echoes in every bunker of GHQ Rawalpindi: India will not forgive. India will not forget. And India will never flinch again.
Enough is enough.
