India must shift to a strategy of strategic offence to secure Kashmir because deterrence alone has proven insufficient to prevent and respond effectively to persistent and escalating terrorism supported by Pakistan from Pakistan-Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (PoK), reported Rahul Pawa of FirstPost..

The April 22, 2025, terrorist massacre in Baisaran valley near Pahalgam, where 26 civilians including newly weds were brutally killed by Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists trained, equipped, and infiltrated via PoK with Pakistan's military and ISI support, starkly highlighted the failure of a deterrence-only approach to secure Indian Kashmir.

The Indian government's decisive response—Operation Sindoor—marked a turning point by moving from defensive containment to offensive strikes deep into PoK and Pakistan’s Punjab province, targeting and obliterating terrorist camps and infrastructure of Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed. 

The operation involved precision, multi-strike attacks guided by satellite and advanced targeting technologies, eliminating over a hundred terrorists including senior trainers and recruiters. This operational shift broke prior strategic norms by explicitly treating terrorist actions on Indian soil as acts of war, holding Pakistan accountable for sheltering terrorists without restraint, and discarding the previous era of “strategic restraint” in favour of “offensive defence.” India's rejection of Pakistan’s nuclear blackmail as a shield further underscores the seriousness of this shift.

Furthermore, Pakistan's retaliatory asymmetric warfare assault on Indian civilian targets using drones and artillery exposed new vulnerabilities and underscored the limitations of mere defensive postures. India’s ability to neutralise these attacks with indigenous layered air defences and to deliver crippling punitive strikes on Pakistan’s air infrastructure showed the strategic advantage of proactive offensive operations.

These sequential Indian actions culminated in neutralising the Baisaran terrorist trio within weeks, dismantling the immediate terrorist threat domestically.

Historically, decades of Pakistan-facilitated terrorism originating from PoK—serving as a “factory for cross-border terror”—have generated cycles of militant infiltrations, targeted killings, and communal shocks in Indian Kashmir.

Despite constitutional changes such as the abrogation of Article 370 in 2019 reducing local recruitment for militancy, Pakistan increased reliance on foreign fighters and intensified targeting of non-Muslims, adopted as a tactic born of desperation.

Thus, sustainable security in the Himalayas requires India not only to counter terrorist incursions reactively but to reclaim PoK and Pakistan-occupied territories of Ladakh (PoTL), the ideological and operational bases for jihadist indoctrination and training. Unless these launchpads are dismantled, terrorism and violence will persist.

The Indian public and leadership now demand a unified, determined offensive approach including not just “offensive defence” but active reclamation and permanent degradation of terror infrastructure across the Line of Control. This strategic posture aims to impose sustained costs on Pakistan’s terrorism proxies, remove safe havens on Pakistani soil, and thereby create lasting deterrence.

In essence, India’s strategic verdict is clear: deterrence alone is no longer enough; only a shift to proactive, strategic offence deep into adversary territory, coupled with diplomatic and economic pressure, can secure Kashmir by disrupting the nexus of cross-border terrorism and reclaiming sovereign Indian territory unlawfully occupied since 1947. This new doctrine redefines India’s military response thresholds and signals a historic policy change toward securing peace and stability in Kashmir.

Key Points

The Baisaran massacre and subsequent evidence highlighted Pakistan-based and supported terrorism as ongoing existential threats.

Operation Sindoor demonstrated the effectiveness and necessity of precise, deep strikes on terrorist infrastructure in PoK and Pakistan.

Pakistan’s retaliatory asymmetrical attacks and India’s successful countermeasures underscore the need for sustained proactive defence.

Historical proxy wars from Pakistan require India to go beyond defence to reclaim territory and destroy terrorist sanctuaries.

India’s policy shift from “strategic restraint” to “offensive defence” and reclamation reflects a crucial evolution in doctrine to achieve enduring security in Kashmir.

Based On First Post Report