Pakistan's economy will pay price for terror attacks, says PM Modi

Operation Sindoor is the new form of justice, not about revenge, says PM Modi in his first public rally since India's counterstrike following the April 22 terror attack

Amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said here that India has made it clear with Operation Sindoor that Pakistan will pay a hefty price for terror attacks, particularly its economy and armed forces.

 

“Now, hot sindoor (vermillion), not blood, flows in Modi’s veins,” he said, adding there will be no talks with Pakistan on trade, but only on Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. “And if Pakistan does not stop exporting terrorists, it would face economic ruin to the last penny. India won’t allow Pakistan access to our rightful share of water. Playing with Indian blood will come at a steep cost. This resolve is India's commitment, one that no force in the world can shake,” the PM said.

 

Addressing his first public rally since Operation Sindoor, the PM said in the border state of Rajasthan that the counter-terror operation was not about revenge but it was the new manifestation of justice.

 

“We gave full freedom to our armed forces, and they, in turn, brought Pakistan to its knees. In response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, we took 22 minutes to demolish the terrorists’ nine largest hideouts,” Modi said to thundering roars from the hundreds of thousands of people present.

 

Despite the scorching heat in the small village of Palana, where the PM addressed the gathering in Bikaner district — a few kilometres away from the holy Karni Mata Temple and the redeveloped Deshnoke railway station, which was inaugurated on Thursday — locals, workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and former members of the armed forces gathered to hear Modi’s message.

 

 

 

“Those who wanted to wipe out sindoor have been turned into dust,” Modi said. He added that while the Nal airbase in Bikaner – which had been targeted by Pakistani forces – remained unfazed, Pakistan’s Rahim Yar Khan airbase “is lying in the ICU (intensive care unit)”.

 

The PM said India’s response has made three things clear — any terrorist attack on India would be met with a decisive response, with the timing, method, and terms determined solely by India’s armed forces. Second, India would not be intimidated by nuclear threats, and third, that India would no longer differentiate between terrorist masterminds and the governments that support them, rejecting Pakistan’s distinction between state and non-state actors.

 

A typical public rally of the PM would generally see a slew of saffron flags waving along the way and at the venue. However, the Bikaner rally was different — thousands of national flags were visible several kilometres before the venue.

 

Every few metres, there was a billboard congratulating the PM and the armed forces on the success of Operation Sindoor.

 

The PM had addressed the public for the first time after the Balakot airstrikes in 2019 from Rajasthan, and he did the same again following Operation Sindoor — an act which Modi dedicated to the patriotism and valour of the state.

 

“We came to support our forces and Modi. Where we live, every second mother has a son in the Army. We know the sacrifices our children make to keep the country safe,” a local woman present at the rally said.