On Wednesday, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri called the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack a planned attempt to spoil the return of normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir and to create an environment that would be conducive to continuing cross-border terrorism from Pakistan.
At a joint press conference with Indian Army Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and Indian Air Force Wing Commander Vyomika Singh, Misri had stated the reason why Operation Sindoor was initiated. Operation Sindoor saw Indian military forces targeting nine major terror setups deep in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).
"On April 22, 2025, Pakistani terrorists, including Pakistan-trained terrorists, belonging to the Lashkar-e-Taiba group conducted a mindless attack on Indian pilgrims at Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. Twenty-five Indians and one Nepali citizen were brutally murdered," Misri said.
In a parallel with the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai, Misri said, "This attack is among the worst in terms of civilian casualties since the Mumbai attacks in November 2008."
Detailing the brutality of the Pahalgam attack, he said, "The victims were killed at point-blank range in the head, in front of their families. This barbaric act did this with a specific intent to traumatize the family members, who were also asked to come back and spread the word."
Misri identified strategic motives behind the strike, stating, "The main objective of this action was to disrupt the restoration of normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir, especially as tourism was becoming the center of the state economy. The attack was obviously intended to discredit that process."
Talking of the economic impact, Misri went on, "As all of you must know, there were more than 2.25 crore tourists in Kashmir last year. The motive of the attack was probably to keep the Union Territory immobile, put it on hold, and provide a backdrop where there could be protracted cross-border terrorism from Pakistan."
Retaliation for the attack in Pahalgam included India's Operation Sindoor against terror infrastructure by Pakistan-based groups Lashkar-e-Taiba and its allied group, The Resistance Front.
The operation was targeted at camps and depot bases believed to have been prime centers for planning and carrying out the attack.
Misri highlighted India's restrained response by the military as being "measured, calibrated, and non-escalatory."
He emphasized that Indian strikes were intended to target terrorist infrastructure, while making sure no collateral damage had been caused on civilians or economic assets.
"The Indian military had made precision strikes. The wish was to eliminate terrorism without any provocation for escalation," Misri concluded.
