Operation Sindoor and the Crisis of Accountability: Two Parallel Storms

Indian launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, 2025, as a response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 innocent people.

- DR. ZEESHAN H. HASHMI & DR. ALISHA VERMA

Indian launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, 2025, as a response to the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam that killed 26 innocent people. Aim of this operation was to destroy nine training camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The post-op media briefing was led by two women officers, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh. This was a smart and symbolic move. It was clear that the role of women in India's armed forces was changing, and their participation sent a strong message of resistance.

POLITICAL FALLOUT FROM MINISTER VIJAY SHAH'S DIVISIVE COMMENTS Declaring Colonel Qureshi a "terrorists' sister," Madhya Pradesh Tribal Affairs Minister Vijay Shah made negative remarks about her at a public event in Mhow, Madhya Pradesh. The comment set off much resentment in social and political spheres. Said Kunwar Vijay Shah, "Jinhone humari betiyon ke sindoor ujade the... humne unbiki beben bhej kar unki bi aisi taisikarwa di..." (those who wiped sindoor (vermilion) off our daughters' forehead... we sent their sister to teach them a lesson)." His comments were delivered in a gathering including MLA and former Cabinet Minister Usha Thakur, Union Minister of State for Women and Child Development Savitri Thakur, and other local BJP leaders.

Reacting to public outcry after Shah's comments on Colonel Qureshi, the Madhya Pradesh High Court took suo motu cognisance on May 14. Mr. Shah unexpectedly called Colonel Qureshi "the sister of the terrorists who carried out the killings of 26 innocent Indians at Pahalgam," the court stated. The court also labelled his comments as "gutter language" and denounced the initial FIR as a "gross trick" suggesting it was meant to be used for minister protection rather than justice execution.