The recent terror attack in Pahalgam, where targeted communal killing came to the fore, was not only a brutal act of terrorism — it had a strategic agenda to divide the nation on communal lines and set back India’s rise. The objective was clear: to provoke communal unrest, sow distrust between communities, and weaken India from within. A warning that India’s internal vulnerabilities and external threats are deeply entangled and the attack was designed to ignite a chain reaction of polarisation, retaliation, and internal unrest.
From the CAA protests to the Murshidabad unrest, we’ve seen repeated attempts to spark a ‘communal trap’ conflict. Meanwhile, $400 million US aid to Pakistan, high-profile Saudi visits by Pakistani leaders, Pakistan ISI chief’s visit to Bangladesh, and Hamas-Pakistani links in PoK suggest growing external coordination.
Equally alarming was the timed and calibrated rhetoric from across the border. In the wake of the attack, Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir declared that Pakistan would remain “the voice of the oppressed Muslims of India” and accused India of “state-sponsored persecution of minorities.” These statements, seemingly diplomatic, were anything but provocative communal messaging. They form a core component of Pakistan’s asymmetric warfare strategy — blending violence with narrative manipulation to create internal unrest in India.
This is the real trap: a cycle where external provocation intersects with internal polarisation, allowing enemies of the Indian state to weaponise the social tensions in the country. And, the most pressing threat is no longer just at the border — it is within our politics, media, and increasingly our minds.
India must be careful not to fall prey to this carefully-laid trap.
The Idea of India Under Threat
The Indian nationalist movement during partition was fundamentally split between two visions; one that rooted nationhood in religious identity, culminating in the idea of Pakistan, and another that envisioned an inclusive, pluralistic India for all, regardless of faith. While Pakistan institutionalised a majoritarian religious state, India rejected this partition logic and remained committed to secularism, enshrining a robustly inclusive vision in its Constitution. The ‘Idea of India’, echoing Tagore’s phrase, celebrates unity in diversity; an ancient civilisation sustained by democratic pluralism, where one can be simultaneously a devout believer, a regional identity-holder, and a proud Indian above all. No other institution is a better example of the ‘Idea of India’ than the most respected Indian Armed Forces. This ethos upholds that differences in caste, creed, culture, or custom are not threats but threads in a shared national fabric, bound by constitutional values of justice, liberty, equality, and fraternity. What remains supreme is a patriotic, responsible, and proud Indian.
The United States giving $400 million aid to Pakistan, Pakistani leaders’ high-profile visits to Saudi Arabia, Pakistan ISI chief’s visit to Bangladesh, and the Hamas-Pakistani link in PoK suggest growing external coordination
Yet this foundational idea now faces a grave challenge: the rise of pseudo-nationalism espoused by divisive politics and religious polarisation. We must not forsake the inclusive ideals of our freedom struggle and the Constitution for a sectarian vision of external and internal divisive forces.
The Long War: Provocation by Proxy
Pakistan’s military establishment has long viewed India’s diversity not as a source of strength, but as an exploitable fault line. Denied the ability to challenge India militarily, Pakistan has turned to a proxy war strategy — arming terror groups, exporting radical ideologies, and more recently, engaging in sophisticated disinformation campaigns.
The Pahalgam attack fits this playbook perfectly. The choice of high-impact target — a bunch of innocent tourists. The location — Kashmir, a region with a turbulent history moving from transient peace Post-Article 370 and elections towards enduring peace. The timing — post-election stabilisation, where communal tensions run high. The visibility – high during VPOUS visit. And the narrative — amplified immediately after the statements from General Munir and coordinated misinformation online.
What is clear is this: the attackers did not simply aim to kill. They aimed to ignite a broader communal conflict, drawing India into a cycle of fear, reprisal, and division.
The Internal Fissures: A Fraying Compact
However, the success of such external provocations depends entirely on the condition of the society they seek to disrupt. And here lies the deeper crisis. India today faces a growing internal challenge: the communalisation of politics, which has steadily eroded the nation’s secular consensus and turned religion into a political weapon.
Over the past decade, identity-based politics has become more overt and legitimised. Campaigns built on religious polarisation, dog whistles against minorities, and rhetorical calls for revenge have not only become common — they often go unpunished. Fringe elements have moved to the centre, and hate speech has turned mainstream.
This political atmosphere acts as fertile ground for external sabotage. When General Munir says Indian Muslims are ‘persecuted’, he draws upon real, visible episodes of lynching, mosque demolitions, and political rhetoric targeting minorities. The fact that these are amplified disproportionately by adversarial forces does not negate their occurrence.
The true test of India’s nationalism is not how loudly it condemns Pakistan, but how firmly it protects all its citizens — regardless of religion. The duty of our leadership, our institutions, and our people is to unite. This is not just about defeating terror. It is about preserving the very idea of India
India’s social fabric has always been delicate. But today, the erosion of institutional neutrality — in law enforcement, the media, and even the judiciary — has made the state appear partisan to large sections of its own population. This perception of bias is what foreign powers like Pakistan exploit. They seek not to convince the world but to convince Indians to stop trusting each other.
From Border War to Inner Collapse
The most dangerous war is not fought with missiles or tanks — it is fought within societies. In India, the communalisation of politics and the normalisation of hate have weakened the very cohesion that once frustrated Pakistan’s attempts to destabilise us.
Three interconnected risks now define the internal landscape:
- Polarised Electorates: Voting blocs are increasingly mobilised along religious lines, often with incendiary rhetoric that leaves communities alienated even after elections end.
- Institutional Partisanship: When law enforcement or courts appear to act selectively, they erode the idea of equal citizenship — providing ideological ammunition for both homegrown radicals and foreign propagandists.
- Media Amplification of Hate: Sensationalism, clickbait, and prime-time bigotry have turned television and social media into accelerants for communal tension rather than agents of democratic debate.
In such an environment, a Pahalgam-style terror attack does not occur in isolation. It becomes part of a larger feedback loop where internal weaknesses and external aggression reinforce each other.
India’s social fabric has always been delicate. Today, the erosion of institutional neutrality has made the state appear partisan to large sections of its population. This perception of bias is what foreign powers like Pakistan exploit. They seek not to convince the world but to convince Indians to stop trusting each other
Five Urgent Correctives
If India is to survive and thrive as a plural democracy, it must understand that the war within is now more dangerous than the war beyond. The following must be seen not as political suggestions, but as national security imperatives:
- De-Communalise Politics: Political parties must recognise that short-term gains through religious polarisation lead to long-term national fragility. The Election Commission must strictly enforce hate speech laws, and parties must voluntarily commit to a secular code of electoral conduct.
- Restore Institutional Trust: Police forces and the judiciary must be seen as neutral arbiters. Cases of communal violence must be investigated and prosecuted transparently. Justice delayed or denied fuels cycles of resentment that Pakistan’s narrative machine capitalises on.
- Reclaim the Digital Space: India needs a central counter-disinformation and radicalisation task force — not to censor dissent, but to prevent the weaponisation of religion online. This task force must work with tech platforms to remove hate content and promote counter-narratives that affirm fraternity.
- Invest in Civic Education: Long-term resilience against division lies in classrooms, not just command rooms. India must introduce civic education that stresses constitutional values, shared histories, and interfaith respect, especially in conflict-prone districts.
- National Unity as Counter-Terrorism: India’s security doctrine must integrate social cohesion into its counter-terrorism framework. Just as the military protects the border, society must protect the republic by upholding its pluralism. It’s here that a National Security Culture is imperative for Surakshit Bharat.
The Global Stage and the Image War
India’s global aspirations — as a voice of the Global South, a tech powerhouse, and a democratic counterweight to China — depend heavily on its internal stability and moral authority. Every communal riot, every hate crime, every targeted injustice chips away at this image.
Pakistan understands this well. Its real aim is not just Kashmir, it is to delegitimise India as a secular democracy in the eyes of the world. That is why statements like General Munir’s matter. They form the foundation of a narrative war, where India is cast as a country turning against itself.
The best way to win that war is not just through border security or diplomatic rebuttals, but through internal course correction.
Conclusion: Unity is Security
The Pahalgam attack was not merely about loss of life. It was about testing India’s cohesion. General Munir’s statements were not just provocation; they were part of a long strategy to validate terror through a divisive agenda. But their success depends entirely on how India responds — not just militarily, but morally.
The true test of India’s nationalism is not how loudly it condemns Pakistan, but how firmly it protects all its citizens — regardless of religion. The goal of our enemies is to divide. The duty of our leadership, our institutions, and our people is to unite.
This is not just about defeating terror. It is about preserving the very idea of India.
The author, a PVSM, AVSM, VSM has had an illustrious career spanning nearly four decades. A distinguished Armoured Corps officer, he has served in various prestigious staff and command appointments including Commander Independent Armoured Brigade, ADG PP, GOC Armoured Division and GOC Strike 1. The officer retired as DG Mechanised Forces in December 2017 during which he was the architect to initiate process for reintroduction of Light Tank and Chairman on the study on C5ISR for Indian Army. Subsequently he was Consultant MoD/OFB from 2018 to 2020. He is also a reputed defence analyst, a motivational speaker and prolific writer on matters of military, defence technology and national security. The views expressed are personal and do not necessarily carry the views of Raksha Anirveda
