-By LeN South Asian Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -08.May.2025, 11.30 PM) New Delhi - In the corridors of power in New Delhi, they are calling it “Sindoor ka Shraap” — the curse of Operation Sindoor. What was meant to be a swift, decisive aerial strike on Pakistani territory has turned into a political and military fiasco that threatens to shake the very foundations of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s authority — not just nationally, but within his own party.
The plan, reportedly conceived in the Prime Minister’s Office with inputs from National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, was ambitious, symbolic and — on paper — strategically calibrated. According to highly placed sources in the Indian defence establishment, the operation sought to carry out precision strikes on targets in Azad (or Pakistani-administered) Kashmir, ostensibly linked to radical militant groups India accuses of fomenting violence in Jammu and Kashmir.
The narrative was simple: exact revenge for recent cross-border infiltrations, assert air superiority, and project muscular nationalism in the run-up to critical state elections. But as with all theatre, what looked impressive in a scripted war room unraveled disastrously when exposed to the real world.
Initial reports from Indian media painted a picture of glory. Over a hundred fighter jets were said to have scrambled from airbases across North India. Targets were “neutralised”, precision drones were deployed, and the nation was told — once again — that India had taught Pakistan a lesson.
But the reality, now seeping through leaks, social media, and international intelligence briefings, is starkly different.
Only two dozen Indian fighter jets, including the much-hyped French-made Rafales and Russian MiG-29s, reportedly entered contested airspace. Within minutes, Pakistan’s air defence systems locked on. Five Indian jets were downed — among them a Rafale, raising immediate questions about the credibility of the multibillion-dollar Indo-French defence deal. One pilot was captured. The rest of the jets turned back.
And perhaps most damning: video footage from Pakistani civilians, now widely circulated online, appears to show the wreckage of Indian aircraft scattered across rural terrain — a silent rebuke to the official narrative being pushed by Indian state broadcasters.
What started as a tactical military operation has now spiralled into a strategic political debacle.
“The idea was to project strength and remind the country of who wears the crown,” said a senior BJP insider who spoke on condition of anonymity. “Instead, what we have is embarrassment abroad and insurrection within.”
Key members of the Bharatiya Janata Party — many of them previously loyal to Modi and Doval’s security doctrine — are now questioning both the motive and the execution of Operation Sindoor. Home Minister Amit Shah, once considered Modi’s unshakeable right hand, is said to have privately criticised the operation’s planning and urged for “strategic restraint” in future engagements.
More tellingly, BJP parliamentarians from Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh — all facing tough electoral challenges — have begun airing their grievances in public.
“We are all patriots. But this is not patriotism. This is playing war games with our soldiers' lives,” thundered a BJP MP during a private party meeting, audio of which has since leaked to several Indian media outlets. “We have lost men, aircraft, and credibility. And for what? A failed PR stunt?”
Sources close to Amit Shah suggest he is deeply disturbed by the growing perception that India’s defence policy is being dictated more by the demands of political optics than long-term strategic logic.
Behind closed doors, Shah has reportedly demanded a full intelligence and military audit of the operation, a move that some interpret as a direct challenge to the authority of Ajit Doval — whose hawkish stance has shaped India’s security posture for nearly a decade.
Even more dramatic are the rumblings that several high-profile BJP figures are quietly lobbying for a leadership change before the next general election. One senior leader, known to be a close confidante of Shah, has publicly floated the idea of a “post-Modi BJP” — a phrase previously unthinkable in party circles.
The international consequences of Operation Sindoor’s failure are equally profound.
France, which has sold 36 Rafale jets to India in a controversial €7.8 billion deal, now faces an uncomfortable spotlight. The downing of one Rafale — confirmed by both open-source video evidence and Pakistani military sources — has rattled confidence in the aircraft’s survivability in hostile airspace.
While Dassault Aviation has yet to issue a formal statement, defence analysts in Europe are already warning of reputational damage, particularly as France eyes new export contracts in the Gulf, Indonesia, and South America.
“This is not just India’s embarrassment,” said a Paris-based defence consultant. “It’s ours too. A Rafale was shot down by a third-generation missile system. That doesn’t inspire confidence.”
Russia too finds itself drawn into the fray. The loss of Indian MiGs, though not unexpected given their age, has renewed calls in New Delhi for a complete overhaul of its air fleet — a task easier said than done amid ongoing budgetary pressures and geopolitical realignments.
In the past, South Asian conflicts played out on battlefields and in newspaper columns. Today, they unfold on Twitter, TikTok and Telegram.
Within hours of the operation, Pakistani social media was ablaze with footage of downed Indian jets, captured wreckage, and triumphant songs. A particularly viral video showed a Pakistani farmer standing atop a Rafale fuselage, waving a green flag, proclaiming: “Ye hai Modi ka gift!” (“This is Modi’s gift!”)
Indian officials tried to counter the narrative with doctored footage and triumphant press releases, but the damage was done. International media — from Al Jazeera to BBC to France24 — picked up the story, often with embarrassing results for the Indian government.
Perhaps most damning was a story by Le Monde, which described the operation as a “military misadventure clouded by propaganda and political desperation.”
Pakistan, for its part, has not remained idle.
In the immediate aftermath of the failed strike, Pakistani forces launched retaliatory artillery and drone attacks on Indian positions in Jammu and the Samba sector. While casualties have been minimal, the psychological impact is unmistakable.
More alarmingly, Pakistani military sources claim they are preparing to deploy Turkish-built Bayraktar drones and new indigenous kamikaze drones in future operations. Intelligence intercepts, shared with this correspondent, suggest plans to target Indian power stations, naval ports, and critical infrastructure nodes in Gujarat and Maharashtra.
Indian defence officials, while downplaying the threat, have quietly moved additional air defence systems to vulnerable installations. A no-fly zone has been declared over parts of Punjab, and civilian flights in and out of Srinagar have been temporarily suspended.
The question on everyone’s lips — from opposition leaders to retired generals — is disarmingly simple: what exactly was Modi thinking?
Was Operation Sindoor an impulsive attempt to shore up a weakening domestic political base? Or was it a calculated gamble gone wrong? Did the Prime Minister underestimate Pakistan’s air defence capabilities, or did he overestimate the Indian Air Force’s readiness?
“Either Modi was misinformed, or he ignored good advice. Either way, the result is the same: failure,” said Lt. Gen. (Retd) Pratap Menon, a former strategic planner in India’s Northern Command.
Opposition leaders have seized the moment. Rahul Gandhi, head of the Indian National Congress, has called for a parliamentary inquiry. “We salute our soldiers. But we condemn the political puppeteers who played with their lives for an election gimmick,” he declared in Parliament.
The Aam Aadmi Party, sensing blood, has taken a harder line. “Modi must resign,” tweeted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. “India deserves better than false flags and fake narratives.”
With national elections due in less than a year, the implications of Operation Sindoor could be far-reaching.
Public trust in the Modi-Doval axis — once unassailable — is eroding. BJP cadres are demoralised. Allies are restive. And for the first time in a decade, the aura of inevitability surrounding Modi’s leadership has cracked.
Yet it would be premature to count him out.
Modi is nothing if not a political survivor. Whether through narrative control, sudden populist schemes, or shifting blame to external enemies, he has turned adversity into advantage before. And with control over key media outlets, he may yet rewrite the story.
But the question is whether the Indian public — especially its increasingly young, online-savvy, and security-conscious middle class — will buy the spin this time.
“The problem with playing the nationalism card,” said a senior BJP strategist, “is that when you lose, the backlash is just as national.”
As Operation Sindoor’s wreckage continues to smoulder — in diplomatic circles, on social media, and in BJP war rooms — one thing is clear: India’s strongman is looking a little less invincible.
-By LeN South Asian Correspondent
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by (2025-05-08 18:43:34)
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