"Exactly What I Had Advocated...": Shashi Tharoor On Operation Sindoor

As India woke up to the news of the all-out counterstrike to avenge Pahalgam attack, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said he is very proud today and stressed that "we have made our point" in a way "that would not justify further expansion of the conflict" with Pakistan.

"A set of calibrated, calculated, precise strikes against terror targets. Exactly what I had advocated last week: hit hard, hit smart. I applaud the government and stand solidly with our armed forces. At the same time we have behaved in a manner that would not justify further expansion of the conflict. We have made our point and acted in self-defence. Time for all concerned to act wisely to prevent uncontrolled escalation. Jai Hind," he said. "So proud of my country today," he added.

Mr Tharoor recently wrote an op-ed for The Indian Express titled "Hit hard, hit smart". In the article, the Thiruvananthapuram MP had said India's Pahalgam response must combine "measured aggression against terror with methods that prevent uncontrollable aggression". He had said India must not allow "grief after Pahalgam to be turned against our citizens".

Mr Tharoor had earlier said everyone was waiting to see a response to the Pahalgam attack in which 26 innocents were killed in cold blood.

"In my opinion, a response should be given, and there should be a message in that response. If you commit such acts, you cannot do so free of cost, and that era is over. This is the price to pay and tomorrow, the price will be greater. If that message is not given, such incidents will continue to occur," he had said. As some of his party colleagues pointed to the intelligence failure that led to the attack, Mr Tharoor had said no country can have 100 per cent intelligence.

"Obviously, there was no full proof intelligence. There was some failure... But we have got the example of Israel, the world's best intelligence services according to everybody, which were taken by surprise on October 7, just two years ago. It seems to me, just as Israel is waiting till the end of the war before they demand accountability, similarly, I think we too should see the present crisis through and then demand accountability from the government. No country can ever have a foolproof 100 per cent intelligence," he said.

The Congress MP was also brutal in his takedown of Pakistan politician Bilawal Bhutto Zardari. Following New Delhi's move to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty, the Pakistan People's Party leader has said, "The Indus is ours and will remain ours, either our water will flow through it, or their blood." In response, Mr Tharoor said, "The Pakistanis have to understand that they simply cannot kill Indians with impunity. We have no designs on Pakistan, but if they do something, they must be prepared for a response. If blood is going to flow, it will possibly flow more on their side than ours."

In the first tri-services operation since 1971, India carried out precision strikes at 1.44 am today on terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir. India struck bases in Pakistan and PoK from where terrorist attacks were being planned and executed. Nine sites were targeted in the strikes under the codename 'Operation Sindoor' - an ode to the women who lost their husbands in the Pahalgam attack.