Chennai: Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi has dismissed Pakistan’s claims of triumph in the wake of ‘Operation Sindoor,’ calling them a result of “narrative management” rather than battlefield success. Speaking at an event at IIT Madras, the Army chief likened the operation to a high-stakes chess match, where uncertainty over the adversary’s next move kept the Indian forces on constant alert.
Read in Punjabi: ਆਰਮੀ ਚੀਫ਼ ਜਨਰਲ ਉਪੇਂਦਰ ਦਿਵੇਦੀ ਨੇ ‘ਆਪ੍ਰੇਸ਼ਨ ਸਿੰਦੂਰ’ ‘ਚ ਪਾਕਿਸਤਾਨ ਦੇ ਜਿੱਤ ਦੇ ਦਾਵਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਨਕਾਰਿਆ
Read in Hindi: पाकिस्तान के फील्ड मार्शल पर साधा जनरल उपेंद्र द्विवेदी ने निशाना, कह दी ये बात
“In Operation Sindoor, it was like playing chess in the grey zone, just short of conventional warfare,” he said. “We were making our moves, they were making theirs. Sometimes we delivered a checkmate, sometimes we went in for the kill, knowing the risks.”
The mission, launched on May 7 in response to the Pahalgam terror attack that claimed 26 civilian lives, targeted terror camps and infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The strikes, executed with precision air and missile capabilities, were carried out after top-level meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. According to Gen. Dwivedi, the government’s political clarity and decision to grant the military a free hand were key to the operation’s success.
“This was the first time we saw such unambiguous political direction. The Defence Minister said, ‘Enough is enough.’ All three service chiefs agreed something decisive had to be done, and the go-ahead was given without hesitation,” he recounted.
The Army chief took a swipe at Islamabad’s move to elevate its Army chief, Gen. Asim Munir, to the honorary rank of five-star field marshal, suggesting it was designed to shape public perception. “If you ask a Pakistani whether they won or lost, they’ll point to the Field Marshal promotion as proof of victory. That’s how narrative control works — victory is as much in the mind as on the ground,” he said.
Explaining the choice of the mission’s name, Gen. Dwivedi said ‘Operation Sindoor’ struck a chord across the country. “A simple name united the nation. People were asking, ‘Why stop now?’ The question has been answered on the ground,” he remarked.
While India described the campaign as measured and non-escalatory, Pakistan attempted retaliatory strikes using drones and missiles, which were successfully intercepted by Indian air defences. Military analysts have hailed the operation as a strategic success that dismantled terrorist infrastructure while reinforcing deterrence against cross-border militancy.
