Prime Minister Narendra Modi was monitoring Operation Sindoor airstrikes through the night and Pakistan's attempts at nuclear blackmail have only strengthened his resolve against terror, Union Minister Jitendra Singh has told NDTV in an exclusive interview.
Mr Singh, Minister of State for the Prime Minister's Office, spoke about May 7 night when India struck nine locations in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, targeting terror bases of the Jaish-e-Mohammed and the Lashkar-e-Taiba.
"When this situation happened, you know, he cut short his visit, was monitoring through the night, minute by minute. I don't think nervousness is known to him because he has a very well-cultivated composure," Mr Singh told NDTV.
The minister said the Prime Minister works most nights. "But this is something that he was absolutely monitoring."
To a question on the Prime Minister's decision-making as the situation developed and the conflict climbed the escalation ladder, Mr Singh replied, "Because of him, the narrative has changed because for the first time, the defence forces have the liberty to take decisions based on their personal wisdom and discretion, which was never happening [in the past]."
"He has huge clarity of mind. Secondly, he is very decisive and his decisions are also prompt. He was clear that we have to crush the terror camps and terrorist sources, not to harm civilians. That remained sacrosanct till the end. The narrative has now changed from React to Act. On the other hand, (he) also (asked) to be careful not to cause collateral damage.''
On how the Prime Minister weighed his response to Pakistan's nuclear blackmail, Mr Singh said, "I don't think PM Modi is one who is given to any kind of blackmail, individual or national. And the more you make the foolhardy effort of pushing this kind of a thing, the more firm he becomes in his resolve.''
Operation Sindoor, India's counterstrike after the Pahalgam terror attack, was precise and restrained. Only terrorist infrastructure was targeted and India made it clear that civilian and military installations were not on the crosshairs. Pakistan, however, responded by firing hundreds of drones across India's western border, targeting civilian and military areas. India retaliated by hitting Pakistan's key military installations, including airbases. This response, too, was measured, meant to send a message instead of inflicting heavy damage. Eventually, a ceasefire was agreed upon after Islamabad, having suffered heavy damage, reached out.
