Pakistan has rejected Indian claims that a former Pakistani military serviceman, allegedly wanted in connection with the April 22, 2025, Pahalgam attack, was killed during an encounter in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK). Indian authorities and media identified the person as Havildar Muhammad Asif, also known as Hashim Moosa, and linked him to the Pakistan Army’s Special Services Group (SSG). On October 1, 2026, DG Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Lt Gen Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry presented Hav Muhammad Asif a( Retd) before the media in Rawalpindi. Asif said he was alive and had been living in Pakistan since retiring from the army. Pakistan consequently described the episode as evidence of another attempt to associate Pakistan with terrorism.
Against this backdrop, Pakistan has long argued that major terrorist incidents in India and IIOJK have been used to defame Pakistan, divert public attention from domestic challenges, and reinforce political narratives surrounding Hindutva and Kashmir. Islamabad has cited incidents including the 2001 Indian Parliament attack, the 2008 Mumbai attacks, the 2016 Pathankot and Uri attacks, the 2019 Pulwama attack and the 2025 Pahalgam attack. Indeed, these all incidents were “false flags”operations. The Pahalgam attack, dramatically intensified tensions between India and Pakistan. India blamed Pakistan-linked militants, while Islamabad denied involvement and called for a neutral investigation. The following day, Indian Cabinet Committee on Security announced that the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 would be held in abeyance until Pakistan, in India’s words, “credibly and irrevocably” abandoned support for cross-border terrorism. The decision marked a significant escalation because the treaty had survived wars and repeated crises between the two countries.
The controversy surrounding the 2019 Pulwama attack is particularly significant. In 2023, former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik alleged that serious security and intelligence lapses had contributed to the attack, in which 40 Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed. Malik said he had raised his concerns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and was told to remain silent. He also alleged that National Security Adviser Ajit Doval had similarly advised him not to discuss the matter publicly. Malik further claimed that the CRPF had sought aircraft to transport personnel but that request was not approved, forcing a large convoy to travel by road. Malik’s revelations remain important political claims, and can be presented as independently established proof that the Pulwama attack was deliberately orchestrated.The Pulwama attack nevertheless had profound strategic consequences. India accused Pakistan of supporting the perpetrators, while Pakistan rejected the allegations. The crisis culminated in India’s February 2019 air strike at Balakot, followed by Pakistan’s military response and the capture of an Indian Air Force pilot after two Indian aircrafts were shot down. The episode demonstrated how quickly a terrorist attack could transform into a military confrontation between two nuclear-armed states. For Pakistan, the larger concern is not merely the attribution of individual attacks but the political and strategic consequences that follow. Whenever terrorism is linked to Pakistan without a transparent and mutually acceptable investigation, Islamabad argues, the resulting narrative can become the basis for diplomatic pressure, military action and measures affecting disputed issues such as Kashmir and water resources.The Pahalgam episode illustrates this danger particularly clearly. Within a day of the attack, India suspended the Indus Waters Treaty and adopted several additional measures against Pakistan. Whatever the competing interpretations of responsibility for the attack, linking a security incident directly to a fundamental water-sharing arrangement carries consequences extending far beyond counterterrorism.The history of India-Pakistan relations therefore demonstrates the need for credible investigations, independent evidence and international scrutiny whenever terrorism is used to justify major political or military measures. Pakistan should continue to demand transparency regarding the questions raised by Satya Pal Malik while also supporting impartial investigations into attacks on civilians and security personnel.
Indeed, the Pulwama and Pahalgam attacks put the Indian military into a strategic disadvantage. It exposed Indian strategy and unfounded accusations, it has been labelling Pakistan. On the other hand, Pakistan today stands at a higher pedestal with a strategically dominating position at regional and global level. While analysing the history of India’s false flag operations, one gets the impression that India considers Pakistan as the last hurdle in achieving the status of a regional hegemon in South Asia. Pakistan demands India to answer the questions raised by former Governor Satya Pal Malik. “It is time India should be held accountable for the actions that imperiled regional peace in the aftermath of Pulwama and Pahalgam attacks.” Pakistan also expects that the international community should act neutrally and question India for these false flag operations. India must give Kashmiris their right of self-determination and stop manipulating IWT-1960.Indeed, Modi and the broader Hindutva agenda of India is very dangerous for South Asia in particular and the world in general.
— The writer is Professor of Politics and IR at International Islamic University, Islamabad.
