PAKISTAN: SECTARIAN VIOLENCE KILLS OVER 80
On April 22, 2025, the serene landscapes of Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam in Jammu & Kashmir turned into a scene of unimaginable horror. Five armed militants, armed with M4 carbines and AK-47 rifles, launched a brutal attack on non-Muslim tourists, singling out individuals based on their faith. In this chilling act of religiously motivated terrorism, 26 civilians were killed-25 of them tourists, mostly Hindus, as well as a Christian and a brave local Muslim pony operator who tried to resist the attackers. The men were shot point-blank, even in front of their newlywed wives, shattering families and shaking the conscience of a nation.
The Resistance Front (TRF), widely believed to be a proxy of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), initially claimed responsibility for the attack. Their justification? A supposed opposition to the post-2019 settlement of non-locals in the region, following the abrogation of Article 370. Though TRF later retracted its claim, the pattern is all too familiar: masked retractions, blurred denials, and clear evidence of cross-border terror support. This attack, India’s deadliest against civilians since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, highlighted the deep rot in the structures of terrorism that stretch beyond borders.
The gruesome incident was not an isolated one, but a symptom of a systemic disease i.e. Pakistan’s deeply entrenched terror complex. Despite its self-proclaimed Islamic identity, Pakistan has become one of the most un-Islamic regimes in the modern world. It has actively encouraged *sectarian violence i.e. FITNA which is strongly prohibited in Islam. Over the decades, Pakistan’s Shia and Ahmadiyya Muslim minorities have been methodically targeted, persecuted, and marginalized to near extinction. Once vibrant and integral to the nation’s social fabric, these communities have been reduced to a whisper, a haunting reminder of Pakistan’s internal religious apartheid.
More disturbingly, Pakistan has made the grotesque normalization of violence against innocents a strategic state policy. Whether through direct action or proxy terror outfits, the targeting of civilians, especially non-Muslims; has become an instrument of geopolitical manipulation. Children from poor families are brainwashed in madrassas and turned into cannon fodder for jihad, while the military elite and their political cronies siphon off the nation’s wealth into overseas havens in London, Dubai, and Switzerland.
The Pahalgam massacre triggered a swift and resolute response from India. On May 7, India launched Operation Sindoor, a targeted missile campaign against militant infrastructure in Pakistan, particularly focusing on groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and LeT. In retaliation, Pakistan claimed civilian casualties and responded with Operation Bunyan al-Marsus, targeting Indian military bases. The brief but intense conflict saw the first-ever drone battle between the two nuclear-armed nations, once again pushing South Asia to the brink of war.
The events also exposed Pakistan’s duplicity on the international stage. While its Prime Minister declared a hollow “victory” and a national holiday on May 11, the world looked on at a country that consistently harbours UN-designated terrorists and shields them behind the curtain of nationalism and religion. Behind the façade of piety lies a nexus of crime: terror networks protected by rogue clerics, hawala operators, and army generals who have turned the country into a sanctuary for extremism.
It is time the global community stop entertaining Pakistan’s doublespeak. A nation that silences its own minorities, kills innocents in the name of religion, and exports terror with state sponsorship cannot claim moral high ground. The Pahalgam attack was not just an attack on Indian citizens; it was an attack on the very fabric of humanity, of faith and of peace.
India’s resilience in the face of this tragedy and its principled retaliation reflect a nation’s unwillingness to bow before terror. But real justice will only be served when the world holds Pakistan accountable, not just for Pahalgam, but for decades of deceit, bloodshed, and betrayal.
-Insha Warsi
Francophone and Journalism Studies,
Jamia Millia Islamia.
