India wages info war to show it has the upper hand against Pakistan

It feels as if a great weight has been lifted off most Indians, although a few did grumble

- Nirmala Ganapathy

NEW DELHI — While news programmes are broadcast on many Indian television channels, sirens can be heard blaring in the background, forcing anchors to raise their voices as they discuss the latest developments in the conflict between India and Pakistan.

This prompted the Home Ministry on May 10 to issue an advisory to TV channels to stop using civil defence air raid sirens — meant to capture the viewer's attention — on their programmes.

"The routine use of sirens may likely reduce the sensitivity of civilians towards the air raid sirens," the advisory cautioned.

Behind all the noise, which includes blanket coverage of the conflict steeped in jingoistic and nationalistic rhetoric, is one message: India has the upper hand against Pakistan.

This message remains in place even as US President Donald Trump announced on May 10 that India and Pakistan had agreed to a "full and immediate" ceasefire.

In tandem with the strikes and counterstrikes, an information war has been waged within and outside India and Pakistan, not just to show their respective domestic audiences that their governments are taking strong action, but also to win support from those following the hostilities from overseas.

In India, this has ranged from pro-government coverage to media bans and advisories, as the government has sought to control the narrative.

Social media platform X, on the orders of the Indian government, had started blocking 8,000 accounts in India, leading to accusations of censorship.

These include accounts of senior journalists from Kashmir and media websites like Maktoob Media — an independent media outlet that said it focused on human rights and minorities — as well as weekly publications Free Press Kashmir and The Kashmiriyat.