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On Wednesday morning, several hours after India launched Operation Sindoor against targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-controlled Kashmir, Mudra Singhe made her way through an unseasonal rain shower to a civil defence drill in South Mumbai.
A volunteer with the National Cadet Corps, the 19-year-old said the session taught her “how to carry out a rescue from a building, either by rappelling or by lying flat and proceeding”.
Kavita Mulge, another member of the young wing of the Indian armed forces, said she found it difficult to “follow and understand everything under heavy rains”. But she appreciated the lessons. “Such drills prepare us for any eventuality,” she said.
However, the prospect of a war had some commuters worried as they made their way to work.
Shivani Tripathi, who works with a private consulting firm in Mumbai, said she believed it was important for India to “send a clear message that terrorism won’t be tolerated”. India has said the strikes were launched in response to last month’s Pahalgam terror attack which had claimed 26 lives.
But she added that she was anxious “about how this could spiral into something much more serious”.
“The thought of it escalating into a war like situation is deeply worrying, not just for the potential loss of lives, but also for the impact it could have on our economy and overall stability,” Tripathi said.
Political unity
Such concerns, however, did not find much echo in public discussions about the strikes. For the most, the discussion remained congratulatory.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party lauded the strikes as India’s message to Pakistan after the killing of 26 people in Pahalgam on April 22. “Chhedoge toh chhodenge nahi,” BJP President JP Nadda wrote on the social media platform X. “If you mess with us, we will not spare you.”
The Opposition was quick to join the ruling party in rallying behind the armed forces.
“Proud of our Armed forces. Jai Hind!” Rahul Gandhi, leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, wrote on the social media platform X. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said, “National unity and solidarity is the need of the hour and the Indian National Congress stands with our armed forces.”
Other Opposition politicians such as Akhilesh Yadav and Arvind Kejriwal also lauded the bravery of Indian soldiers.
Triumphal mood
On television news, the mood was triumphal. Several news channels reported that a large number of terrorists had been killed in the strikes, even though no such information had officially been released by the government.
ABP News ran a ticker stating that “900 terrorists” had been eliminated in the 25-minute late night operation. NDTV estimated some “70 terrorists” died in the missile attack. Neither channel attributed the information to a credible source.
Pakistan’s claim that it had shot down Indian jets, for which there was no official confirmation or independent verification, went uncontested and unexamined on Indian TV.
Instead, TV channels focused on Pakistan defence minister Khawaja Asif’s comments to Bloomberg, in which he said his country would “wrap up these things” if India backed down. But Pakistan would have to defend itself and respond as long as it was “under attack”, he said.
Zee News interpreted this as evidence of Pakistan’s “surrender” after Operation Sindoor.
‘More attacks’
Abhishek Banerjee, national general secretary of the Trinamool Congress, called for further action against Pakistan without naming the country. “The real problem is not the rabid dog – rather its the vile handler who breeds, trains and unleashes terror,” he wrote on X.
Banerjee was not the only one asking for more military action.
The families of those killed in Pahalgam attack were quoted as asking for more attacks. Sarbori Guha, whose husband died in Pahalgam, told Asian News International that the “whole Pakistan needs to be eliminated”.
Many across India expressed their support for the strikes.
“This is a befitting response to the terrorist attacks,” said Parimal Kumar, an aspiring teacher in Ranchi, Jharkhand. “Wars are not good for the economy but we are ready to suffer.”
Added Pratham Mahato, a tea vendor in Ranchi, “We might suffer a little but in return Pakistan will be obliterated. After Operation Sindoor, I am awaiting Operation Mangalsutra.”
The strikes had been labelled Operation Sindoor. Sindoor is the traditional vermillion that Hindu women wear on their heads to denote their status as married. The symbolism resonated with many Indians, especially in the Hindi belt, given that several of the tourists killed in Pahalgam were married Hindu men who are survived by their widowed wives.
“We Indians have reacted strongly,” said Parashar Kalita, a resident of Guwahati in Assam.
The 28-year-old said: “In the past, for example, during the Mumbai terror attack, our government did not respond properly, but times have changed. As Indians, we need to be united and support our country.”
Further east, in Arunachal Pradesh, Heenu Riba was more cautious.
“As someone who hails from the border state of Arunachal Pradesh, war is scary and traumatising,” said the 26-year old who works for an education non-profit in Roing.
If this attack escalated into a full-scale war, people in the region will live in fear of China attacking the eastern border, she said.
“My people have already experienced the war in 1962,” she said. “We don’t want any war.”
This article first appeared on Scroll.in
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