Operation Sindoor: Information dimension emerges as key battlefront

Operation Sindoor, successfully undertaken by India under the leadership of Narendra Modi, has seen a series of calibrated punitive actions against Pakistan following the horrific terrorist attack in Pahalgam. While news trickles in on the depth and breadth of India’s strikes into Pakistan, an important aspect of Operation Sindoor is the information theatre that has manifested along several dimensions and characterised by a multitude of actors. Preceding Operation Sindoor by more than a week and in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attack, the misinformation campaign started by Pakistan first attempted to create a false narrative of the attack being a false flag operation. While the claims found few takers, the prelude to Operation Sindoor also saw the terrorist outfit that originally claimed the attack try to clumsily retract its claim on the grounds of a laughable “internal audit”. 

Predictably the global media narratives on the Pahalgam attack saw a familiar pattern with outlet after outlet refusing to characterise the terrorist attack for what it was. While some chose to cop out with labels such as “militants” and “gunmen”, few others made a mockery of themselves calling the attack “bombings” and “firing” incidents. The horrific manner in which adult males were singled out on the basis of religion was also given a free pass by much of the western media reminding us of their hypocrisy. 

The several days leading up to Operation Sindoor saw a series of measures being taken by India, which shaped the dominant narratives within the information theatre. From cancellation of visas to snapping almost all forms of trade and transit links, these measures set the tone for a period of speculation over when and how India would act with the Uri and Balakot precedents being often cited. The speculative mindgames over likely India action took its toll on Pakistan with a series of misstatements by current and former Pakistani leaders, including admitting to the use of Jihadist terrorism over the decades. 

The first significant geopolitical move by India against Pakistan following the Pahalgam attack was the unilateral suspension of the Indus Water Treaty by the Narendra Modi-led government with India taking the psychological warfare against Pakistan to a new level, simultaneously stoking fears over drought and floods downstream. Prime Minister Modi’s public remarks during this period, aimed at both domestic and international audiences, made clear that a red line had been crossed in Pahalgam and that there would be serious consequences. While his remarks in English during a public event in Bihar signalled India’s intent to the world on holding to account the terrorists and their masters, his remarks in Hindi at a news conclave underlined the geopolitical shift on how the suspension of the Indus Water Treaty meant the waters from the rivers will stop or flow in line with India’s strategic interests. In between these two public events, Modi hosted a global media and entertainment event in Mumbai adding to the element of surprise on when and how India would choose to act. The four-day global event in Mumbai, with mostly international participants, also meant that India as the soon-to-be world’s third largest economy had the capacity and capability to both transact business and defend its interests. 

With the information theatre keeping everyone guessing on the timing, manner and mode of India’s likely actions, Operation Sindoor not only went far beyond both Uri and Balakot with its strikes on terror-related sites inside Pakistan, it rewrote the rules of engagement between India and its nuclear neighbor in response to cross border terrorism. 

While the series of punitive measures undertaken by India as part of Operation Sindoor saw many lines crossed and new precedents set militarily, the information theatre was no less a battlefield with misinformation, disinformation, deep fake videos and sponsored propaganda through international media all playing a role. While disinformation originating from Pakistan made ludicrous and unsubstantiated claims on Pakistan’s response to India’s strikes, a barrage of counter disinformation saw the spread of fear and confusion within Pakistan over the safety of its ports, rumours of a coup within the military with even a few institutional social media accounts being compromised. 

It was a commendable performance by the fact check unit of India’s Press Information Bureau working round the clock to bust fake news and counter propaganda. The barrage of fake news while active operations were on was also a reflection on the sorry state affairs of India’s electronic media with hyperventilating TV news anchors embarrassing themselves in prime time. The volume of advisories issued by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to TV channels reflect poorly on the manner in which TV news channels conducted themselves during Operation Sindoor despite the discipline with which flow of official information was regulated by the government. 

The information warfare against India during Operation Sindoor also witnessed a second front being opened up in the international warfare with a series of motivated news reports that both simultaneously hyped up the performance of China’s weapon systems in use by Pakistan while also seeking to sow doubts and run down the performance of Indian Air Force with the Rafale jets being singled out as targets of incessant propaganda. From fake claims of the capture of a female Indian Air Force pilot to outlandish claims on the number of Indian fighter jets downed by Pakistan, this second front within the information theatre was a reminder on how the international media environment continues to be hostile to the world’s largest democracy with some outlets like the Financial Times even drawing false moral equivalences with the Jihadist military leadership in Pakistan. 

The pause in Operation Sindoor also coincided with National Technology Day, marking the Pokhran nuclear tests. The role of technology in ensuring the success of Operation Sindoor, especially in air defence, is a reminder on accelerating defence research and innovation reforms and in expanding the role of the private sector in defence manufacturing. The expanded use of drones and the avalanche of misinformation and disinformation should also be a reason for India to fast track indigenously developed information systems such as Direct to Mobile D2M Broadcasting to ensure much needed resilience to the information network while regulating the flow of information. The strategic applications of D2M in the areas of positioning, navigation and timing as a fallback to satellites, which may be spoofed or jammed during hostilities, can give India a much-needed homegrown technological edge in managing the information theatre. 

While India’s success in Operation Sindoor will be the subject of critical analysis in the days and weeks to come, the information theatre is also in the spotlight for the unenviable burden that Prime Minister Modi has had to shoulder in managing expectations on acting against Pakistan while also rallying the nation for the challenging road ahead in sustaining economic growth and building military capacity. It is to the Prime Minister’s creative genius that Operation Sindoor not only struck an emotive chord to unite the nation but also delivered a telling message to regressive Pakistan on a daily basis from the two military lady spokespersons in a repudiation of the very idea of Pakistan. 

The author is former CEO Prasar Bharati