Pahalgam Terror Attack Shatters Security Assumptions, Puts Government On Edge

April 22, 2025 will be remembered as a dark day in Kashmir’s recent history. A brutal terror attack in Pahalgam, which led to the deaths of at least 28 people, has not only rekindled grim memories of Pulwama but also raised critical questions over India’s Kashmir policy post the abrogation of Article 370.

The Resistance Front, widely believed to be a proxy of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, has claimed responsibility for the carnage. Witness accounts indicate that one of the attackers spared a tourist, asking them to deliver a chilling message: “Go tell Modi.” This was not just an act of violence it was a statement, a symbolic strike intended to puncture the narrative of peace returning to the Valley.

The horrific bloodshed comes just days after Pakistani Army chief General Syed Asim Munir reasserted his country’s obsession with Kashmir, declaring it “our jugular vein.” His speech, steeped in revanchist sentiment and invoking the outdated two-nation theory, should have served as a clear warning to Indian security planners. Instead, complacency appears to have prevailed.

For a government that has repeatedly stated that the 2019 abrogation of Article 370 dismantled terrorism and the ecosystem that sustained it, the Pahalgam attack is a devastating rebuttal. Most of those killed were likely tourists who had been assured that Kashmir was safe again victims of misplaced confidence. Despite recent peaceful local elections and high-profile development pushes, the attack reveals the continued vulnerability of the region and the lingering potency of anti-India terror networks.

More alarmingly, the attack follows a pattern. Only weeks ago, Pakistan accused India of being behind the March hijack and bombing of the Jaffer Express. Months before that, Islamabad’s foreign ministry blamed New Delhi for “extraterritorial killings” inside Pakistani territory. The timing of the Pahalgam massacre, in this context, appears far from coincidental.

Equally troubling is the lack of visible preventive measures. After General Munir’s public rant, what additional security reinforcements were deployed in sensitive areas like Pahalgam? Was intelligence overlooked? Was this failure rooted in the misjudged belief that Pakistan’s preoccupations in Balochistan and the Afghanistan border had neutralised its capacity to strike India?

Further complicating the picture is Pakistan’s volatile internal politics. The current establishment, under the Sharif family, owes its survival to the military, which sidelined former Prime Minister Imran Khan despite his party winning the popular vote in the February 2024 elections. Khan’s nationalist-Islamist appeal continues to draw massive support, creating rifts within the military. General Munir’s aggressive Kashmir remarks may thus be seen as both a distraction from domestic failures and a unifying call to rally the country against a perceived external enemy.

Meanwhile, India’s diplomatic calculus is under strain. Prime Minister Narendra Modi cut short his Saudi Arabia visit in response to the crisis. Former US President Donald Trump reportedly reached out, either to express condolences or perhaps to caution restraint. His past interventions post-Balakot suggest the latter is possible. Russia’s Vladimir Putin also condemned the attack, underlining its international resonance.

The immediate question remains: was this a one-off or the beginning of a renewed campaign of terror? With the Amarnath Yatra just two months away, the fear is real. Already, reports suggest that American-origin weapons left behind in Afghanistan may have been used in both the Jaffer Express incident and now in Pahalgam. If verified, this could point to a dangerous new dynamic in regional terrorism, fuelled by abandoned Western arsenals.

Domestically, the government now faces a credibility test. The promise of restored statehood remains unfulfilled. The Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla rail link’s Katra-Sangaldan stretch still awaits inauguration by the Prime Minister. These delays, coupled with a deteriorating security narrative, only add to the perception that Kashmir’s return to “normalcy” was oversold.

Some sections of the media and political circles are already calling for a robust military response. The 2019 Balakot airstrike had set a precedent; a repeat may now be on the cards. Targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, such as Lashkar’s Muridke base, or dropping the LoC ceasefire, are options being discussed. However, with both India and Pakistan being nuclear-armed, any escalation risks spiraling into open conflict. Strategic restraint, paired with covert precision, may be a more prudent course.

In the long term, however, the Pahalgam attack has re-emphasized a crucial diplomatic lesson: isolating Pakistan diplomatically without engaging with it politically has diminishing returns. Ignoring an adversary does not erase them. As KC Singh, former Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, notes, “Boycotting engagement with a neighbour with which major outstanding disputes linger is bad policy.”

As the investigation unfolds, clarity is urgently needed on multiple fronts—from the weapons used and lapses in local security to the broader implications for Kashmir’s future. What’s clear is that the battle for peace in Kashmir is far from over—and this government must now do far more than proclaim normalcy. It must prove it.

Letters to the Editor:

“The state of Jammu & Kashmir has once again come under terror attacks. The killing of tourists, including foreign nationals, is inhuman and condemnable. It is a serious setback to tourism and development in Jammu and Kashmir. In the interest of the state economy, Kashmiris must trigger a civic movement and support security forces in combating terrorism.” – P.R. Ravinder, Hyderabad

With inputs from: Rashme Sehgal and KC Singh former secretary, Ministry of External Affairs