‘Terror Has a Price’: CDS Anil Chauhan Criticizes Pakistan’s Duplicity at Global Security Forum

New Delhi/Singapore: At the prestigious Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s foremost security summit, a rare but pointed exchange unfolded between India and Pakistan’s top military leaders amid rising tensions following the recent Pahalgam terror attack.

According to senior sources attending the event, India’s Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Anil Chauhan, delivered a clear and firm message that India’s patience with cross-border terrorism has worn thin.

In a closed-door session focused on regional security challenges, General Chauhan strongly referenced India’s recent Operation Sindoor—a precise military campaign targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and across the border.

“This operation marks a decisive shift in India’s stance,” sources quoted General Chauhan as saying. “A new red line has been drawn. The era of strategic restraint in the face of terrorism is over.”

While refraining from naming Pakistan outright, General Chauhan made pointed remarks about its long-standing support for proxy terrorist groups.

“We have endured more than two decades of proxy warfare. The toll on civilians, soldiers, and our economy is unacceptable,” Chauhan reportedly stated.
“Operation Sindoor was not merely a tactical response; it was a strategic signal.”

In contrast, Pakistan’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, took a familiar stance during simultaneous sessions, calling for “conflict resolution” over Kashmir and cautioning against escalation risks.

During a panel on crisis management, Mirza stressed that without sustained dialogue, conflict could spiral out of control. He reiterated Pakistan’s long-held demand that the Kashmir issue be resolved “in accordance with UN resolutions and the will of the people.”

However, Indian defence officials dismissed Mirza’s remarks as “predictable deflection,” highlighting Pakistan’s continued support for terrorist groups.

“While Pakistan preaches peace, it shelters those who carry out massacres like the Pahalgam attack,” said an official from the Indian delegation.

Operation Sindoor was launched by India on May 7 in direct retaliation to the April 22 terror attack on tourists in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which claimed 26 lives. The four-day operation involved cross-border precision strikes on at least nine terror launchpads and concluded on May 10, following briefings to several countries including the U.S., U.K., and UAE on India’s objectives and outcomes.

Sources say General Chauhan emphasized that India’s response was “limited, lawful, and targeted,” aimed at delivering long-term deterrence. He reportedly warned that if Pakistan fails to learn from this, future consequences could be far more severe.

Security analysts at the summit observed that while Pakistan sought once again to internationalize the Kashmir dispute, India portrayed itself as a responsible power firmly enforcing hard red lines against terrorism.

With inputs from IANS