Modi vows swift justice after deadly Kashmir assault amid rising Indo-Pakistani tensions

Department of Research, Studies and International News 25-04-2025

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made a forceful declaration to hold accountable those behind a recent brutal assault in Kashmir, vowing to track down the perpetrators and bring them to justice, regardless of where they hide. The statement followed a devastating attack in the picturesque town of Pahalgam that resulted in the deaths of 26 individuals, marking one of the deadliest civilian incidents in the region in over two decades.

Addressing a crowd in Bihar during a ceremony to launch new development initiatives, Modi held a moment of silence for the victims before delivering a stern warning. “Whoever orchestrated and executed this heinous act will face consequences beyond imagination,” he said. “Their existence will be reduced to dust. The collective will of 1.4 billion Indians stands against terrorism.”

India has directly accused Pakistan of harboring and enabling cross-border terrorism, a charge Islamabad firmly denies. In response, New Delhi swiftly enacted a series of diplomatic retaliations, including the downgrading of bilateral ties. The Indian government has withdrawn its defence personnel from Pakistan, reduced its diplomatic staff in Islamabad, and declared several Pakistani military representatives in India as persona non grata.

Furthermore, Pakistan’s acting envoy in Delhi, Saad Ahmad Warraich, was formally summoned by India’s Ministry of External Affairs to express the country’s deep distress over the attack. According to local reports and diplomatic sources, Warraich was notified of the immediate downgrading of Pakistan’s diplomatic presence and India’s suspension of key bilateral agreements, including a longstanding visa-free travel scheme and the Indus Waters Treaty, which has historically survived periods of military conflict between the two nations.

Authorities in Kashmir have identified three suspects believed to be involved in the attack, two of whom are Pakistani nationals. A reward has been announced for information leading to their arrest, and Indian security forces have launched an extensive search across the region. Survivors recounted harrowing scenes, claiming that the assailants forced local men to recite Islamic scriptures, executing those who failed to comply.

Responsibility for the massacre was claimed by a relatively obscure group calling itself the Kashmir Resistance, which condemned what it described as demographic changes in the Muslim-majority region, citing the recent influx of over 85,000 non-local residents.

The attack is seen as a direct blow to the Indian government’s narrative of peace and progress in Kashmir, especially following the 2019 revocation of the territory’s special constitutional status. That decision, made by Modi’s administration, has remained a point of contention and was followed by heightened unrest and increased militarization in the region.

As tensions flare, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has reportedly called for a meeting of the country’s National Security Committee to discuss Islamabad’s response. Meanwhile, concerns of renewed conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbors are growing, with observers fearing that the situation may escalate unless diplomatic channels are re-established.