THE ART OF WAR

Taking high-profile actions in a hurry may satisfy popular anger over the Pahalgam killings, but it is more desirable to exhaust the enemy to a point of collapse

- KV Ramesh

The Pakistani army, which without any doubt is behind the Pahalgam tragedy, needs to be not just punished for its latest atrocity, but more importantly, its capacity for such heinous acts should be radically reduced, by degrading its military capability.

With an all-out war with Pakistan out of question, what is needed is asymmetrical action by Indian security forces and agencies. The revanchist force has to be 'death by a thousand cuts', the same strategy Pakistan used by employing radicalized elements, to ensure that it loses ability and motivation to launch such attacks against India.

The ultra-conservative force's religious facade is a stratagem to keep a largely illiterate Muslim mass fed on propaganda of its Islamic superiority. The Pak army's motto is “Iman, Taqwa, Jihad fi Sabilillah” meaning faith, piety and struggle and in the path chosen by God. Its sole target is India, which it portrays as the existential threat to Pakistan.