Retaliatory strike is not enough

A lot of hue and cry has been raised following the Pulwama terror attack and the consequent air strike at Balakot. Politicians and social activists of various hues have made a massive outcry on the issue. But the real question in the aftermath of these dramatic events is if there is a new normal in the Indo-Pakistan stand-off. Surely the retaliatory strike is not enough.

What we need is a totally new approach to the problem. It is holding the Pakistani State accountable for what its "non-State" actors do. Our only other option is to use low-cost non-State actors ourselves, but in the long run such stratagems will hurt us too, as they have Pakistan. These ugly and violent monsters easily turn against their own makers and keepers.

Instead, if India targets Pakistani State each time we are hit by a Pakistan-sponsored terrorist group, the spotlight will once again turn to Pakistan as a rogue State, with the military and ISI as the controllers of its cross-border interference and aggression. Pakistan, whether militarily or economically, is no match for India.

Nor can it counterbalance these disadvantages diplomatically. The result of every skirmish, even if inconclusive, is that Pakistan will be weakened and exposed. Holding the Pakistani State responsible for terrorist activities against India and improving our intelligence operations within Pakistan is the way forward.

-Om Prakash D, Hyderabad