Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has given the armed forces 'complete freedom to decide on the mode, targets, and timing' of India's military response to the Pahalgam terror attack, sources told NDTV Tuesday night.
The message was delivered as the Prime Minister met Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan.
Sources said the Prime Minister 're-affirmed that it is our national resolve to deal a crushing blow to terrorism' and that he has 'complete faith and confidence' in the Indian military.
Shortly after the meeting, Home Minister Amit Shah and Mohan Bhagwat, chief of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the ruling BJP's ideological mentor, reached the Prime Minister's residence.
The PM's message, sources explained, greenlights military action against the terrorists who killed 26 people, mostly civilians, in the worst such incident since the Pulwama attack in February 2019.
Then India conducted precision air strikes on terrorist camps in Balakot in Pakistan. The camps were run by banned terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed with help from the Pak Army.
Fast-forward six years and it is another familiar banned Pak-based terror group - the Lashkar-e-Taiba - that has been linked with this attack. A proxy - The Resistance Front - has claimed responsibility.
Meanwhile, security agencies have also said available evidence pointed to Pakistan again. Diplomats from the US, Russia, China, Japan, and some European nations have been briefed on this material.
The government has already rolled out a series of diplomatic restrictions on Pakistan.
