New Delhi: One year after one of the most intense military confrontations between two nuclear-armed neighbours in recent history, both India and Pakistan on Thursday marked the first anniversary of the 2025 conflict. New Delhi hailed “Operation Sindoor” as a decisive response against terrorism, while Islamabad commemorated the anniversary by terming it “Marka-e-Haq or Battle of Truth,” with claims of victory over India.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a post on X, praised the Indian armed forces for their role during Operation Sindoor and said the country remained committed to crushing terrorism and its support networks.
“A year ago, our armed forces displayed unparalleled courage, precision and resolve during OperationSindoor. They gave a fitting response to those who dared to attack innocent Indians at Pahalgam,” Modi wrote on X.
Modi further said that India’s push for self-reliance in the defence sector had strengthened national security, and asserted that the country remained “steadfast” in its resolve to defeat terrorism and dismantle its enabling ecosystem.
India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar also said in a post on X that Operation Sindoor had demonstrated India’s determination to respond firmly to cross-border terrorism originating from Pakistan.
“A year ago, OperationSindoor demonstrated the nation’s resolve to defend itself against cross-border terrorism from Pakistan, the operation “ensured accountability for terrorist actions” and underlined India’s policy of “zero tolerance for terrorism” under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi.Jaishankar wrote.
On the other side of the border, Pakistan commemorated the anniversary by officially observing “Marka-e-Haq” or “Battle of Truth” through military ceremonies, televised press briefings, and renewed claims of military success during the four-day conflict that followed the April 22, 2025 Pahalgam terror attack.
However, Indian military veterans, political leaders, and strategic experts dismissed Pakistan’s anniversary celebrations as a carefully crafted narrative exercise aimed primarily at domestic audiences rather than an accurate reflection of battlefield realities.
Pakistan Celebrates ‘Marka-e-Haq’
In a press briefing, Pakistan military’s media wing, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) praised the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) for its role during the military confrontation and called it “a defining chapter in the nation’s military history.”
At a high-profile press conference in Rawalpindi, ISPR Director General Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, accompanied by Rear Admiral Shifaat Ali Khan and Air Vice Marshal Tariq Ghazi, made a series of claims regarding Pakistan’s role during the conflict and a decisive victory over India
Lt. Gen. Chaudhry said that Pakistan had secured a historic “8-0 edge” over the Indian Air Force, claiming Pakistani forces had shot down 8 Indian jets, including Rafale and Su-30 models, neutralised Indian drones, and successfully executed “full-spectrum multi-domain operations” involving coordinated action across air, land, sea, and cyber theatres.
“A year ago, we buried India’s arrogance in the dust,” Chaudhry said during the briefing, adding that Pakistan’s military had defeated an adversary “five times larger.”
Rear Admiral Shifaat Ali Khan, speaking on the naval dimension of the conflict,claimed Pakistan’s Navy had remained prepared to target India’s aircraft carrier INS Vikrant and ensured Indian naval assets failed to threaten Pakistani ports, coastal installations, or maritime trade routes throughout the hostilities.
Air Vice Marshal Tariq Ghazi described “Marka-e-Haq” as a “classical case study” in modern aerial warfare, saying the performance of the Pakistan Air Force would be “studied internationally” and calling it “unprecedented in the history of aerial warfare.”
Indian Veterans Reject Pakistan’s Claims
The anniversary celebrations drew immediate and sharp responses from Indian military veterans and political figures, who challenged each of Pakistan’s central claims.
Retired Major Mohammad Ali Shah, a former officer of the Assam Rifles who served along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir and later as ADC in the Northeast, criticised Pakistan’s narrative.
“Look, this is not new. We’ve seen this pattern for a long time since the Kargil war. After every skirmish , even if they suffered far greater losses, the Pakistani military’s first instinct is to run to their media and declare victory. It’s institutional. It’s part of how the Pakistan Army maintains its domestic legitimacy.” Major Ali Shah told News Network Plus over a telephonic interview.
Rejecting Pakistan’s claim of an “8-0” victory, Shah said such assertions lacked any verifiable evidence.
“The 8-0 claim is laughable to anyone with operational experience.If India had truly lost eight aircraft in 80 hours, there would be satellite imagery, wreckage, pilot captures. Instead, what we have are ISPR press conferences and PowerPoint slides.” he said.
Shah also dismissed Pakistan Navy’s claim regarding INS Vikrant.
“You don’t announce that you were ‘ready to strike’ a target, choose not to strike it, and then declare victory, That’s not military dominance. That’s a near-miss story presented as bravado. The fact that their Rear Admiral raised it publicly suggests they remain psychologically preoccupied with it,” he remarked.
On the ceasefire itself, Shah argued the sequence of events contradicted Pakistan’s victory narrative.
“Every military officer understands this – the side seeking outside intervention first is usually the side under pressure, Pakistan reached out to Washington. The Americans stepped in because Islamabad needed an exit. India was operating from a position of strength when the ceasefire came,” he said.
He further cautioned against the dangers of states internalising exaggerated wartime narratives.
“A nuclear-armed country facing severe economic stress, which fought an 80-hour conflict and then immediately moved toward a ceasefire, now threatening an even stronger future response , that’s not deterrence signalling. That’s desperation signalling,” he said. “The danger is when military establishments begin believing their own mythology. That’s when miscalculations happen.”
BJP FIRES BACK: “PAKISTAN IS CELEBRATING THE MURDER OF 26 INDIANS”
On the political front, BJP National Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla launched a strong attack on Pakistan’s anniversary events, linking them directly to the Pahalgam attack.
“I want to say this with full clarity and full emotion that Pakistan is celebrating the murder of 26 innocent Indians,” Poonawalla said in an interview with News Network Plus at the BJP headquarters.
“Those tourists were fathers, sons, husbands. They were pulled out and shot in front of their families based on their religion. And today the Pakistani is organising ceremonies and calling it a ‘Battle of Truth.’ This is the truth of Pakistan – a state that shelters terrorists and later celebrates the consequences of that terror, ” Poonawalla said.
“Operation Sindoor” was India’s response to the Pahalgam killings.
“The Modi government’s message to the families of those victims is clear – Operation Sindoor was India’s answer,” he said. “It was precise, powerful, and changed the cost-benefit calculation for those who sponsor terrorism against India. The victims of Pahalgam are not forgotten. They are the reason Sindoor happened.”
Rejecting Pakistan’s claim that India’s “terrorism narrative” had collapsed, Poonawalla accused Islamabad of following an old pattern.
“Pakistan has followed the same playbook for decades that deny everything, blame India, ask for evidence, and present itself internationally as the victim,” he said. “The world understands this pattern now.”
Responding to criticism that India’s official silence regarding possible aircraft losses allowed Pakistan to dominate the information space, Poonawalla defended the government’s approach.
“If Pakistan had actually shot down eight Indian aircraft, this country would not be discussing it calmly one year later. There would be wreckage, public outrage, and parliamentary uproar. The absence of all that is itself the answer.”
On criticism surrounding the US-brokered ceasefire and Donald Trump’s claims of intervention, Poonawalla said India had already completed its military objectives before the ceasefire.
“India had achieved its objectives. The strikes on terror infrastructure were complete,” he said. “This was not a case of India being stopped mid-operation. As for Trump taking credit – American presidents often do that for domestic political reasons. Strategic autonomy does not mean refusing diplomacy. It means ensuring no one else defines India’s red lines.”
The Attack That Triggered the Conflict
The anniversary commemorations come against the backdrop of the April 22, 2025 Pahalgam terror attack, one of the deadliest civilian attacks in Jammu and Kashmir in recent years.
Gunmen opened fire on tourists at the Baisaran in Pahalgam, killing 26 civilians, most of them Hindu tourists. The massacre triggered nationwide outrage in India and rapidly escalated tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad.
India blamed Pakistan-based militant groups for orchestrating the attack. Pakistan denied involvement and called for an independent international investigation
In the days that followed, New Delhi suspended the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, downgraded diplomatic ties, cancelled visas, and heightened military deployment along the Line of Control.
On the night of May 6–7, 2025, India launched “Operation Sindoor,” carrying out precision missile strikes targeting what it described as terror infrastructure deep inside Pakistani territory.
Pakistan retaliated with its own military campaign, named “Operation Bunyanum Marsoos.” The conflict involved missile exchanges, drone warfare, artillery shelling, and air operations , It lasted roughly 87 hours before a ceasefire was announced on May 10, 2025.
The ceasefire was reportedly brokered with American involvement, with then US President Donald Trump publicly claiming credit for preventing a wider regional war.
Competing Narratives, Limited Verification
One year later, the May 2025 India-Pakistan confrontation remains among the most disputed military episodes in South Asia’s recent history.
India and Pakistan continue to present sharply contradictory accounts of the outcome, while independent verification remains limited due to the fog of war surrounding the fast-moving conflict involving drones, missiles, cyber operations, artillery, and air combat.
What remains indisputable is the human cost: 26 tourists killed in Pahalgam, civilian casualties on both sides of the border during missile and artillery exchanges, and an entire region pushed dangerously close to a nuclear crisis before international diplomacy intervened.
The diplomatic consequences also continue to shape regional geopolitics. The Indus Waters Treaty remains suspended, bilateral diplomatic engagement is still reduced, and the Line of Control remains one of the most heavily militarised borders in the world.
Both India and Pakistan face strong domestic political pressures to project military strength, making objective post-conflict assessments increasingly difficult within either country’s media ecosystem.
The Author
Discover more from News Network Plus
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
