The Operation Sindoor debate in Parliament is primed for politics.
The first day of the debate in the Lok Sabha revealed the stakes of both, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Opposition.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s assertion of the muscular nationalism plank as a way forward for India and the BJP is in direct line of Opposition's fire in the debate. But underneath the gloss of ideology lies the BJP's realpolitik.
In the first week of the Monsoon session, PM Modi went on two nation visits, returning to the national capital with a brief stopover in Tamil Nadu where he warmed up the poll pot for the BJP. He will again be in Bihar to run almost solo for the ruling National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) campaign for the incumbent Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who battles a sharp dip in appeal amid deteriorating law and order situations.
Aware of stakes in the Operation Sindoor debate, the treasury showed an extraordinary sense of preparedness in the Lok Sabha. Union Ministers—Rajnath Singh and Subrahmanyam Jaishankar—came to the House with a full script of rebuttals for the claims made by the Opposition in the last few months.
BJP's Deflect-Dominate Policy
The Defence Minister was once an educationist before he entered politics. In his address, Singh seemed to be in his element - delivering a masterclass in deflection and evasion. While ducking all direct questions, such as the number of fighter jets downed in the four-day military conflict with Pakistan, or queries on operational details, Singh lectured the leaders on what the Opposition should be asking and dismissed direct questions on operational details.
“We achieved all our objectives. When we focus on small things, we miss out from the bigger objectives.”Rajnath Singh, Union Minister of Defence
Jaishankar dealt with another Opposition attack, centered around the US President Donald Trump claiming ownership of the ceasefire between India and Pakistan by dangling the carrot of trade and tariffs. The External Affairs Minister sought to remove the Prime Minister from the Opposition's firing line.
“The Prime Minister and Trump have not spoken except for once in April and another time in June.”Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, External Affairs Minister of India
Even while the BJP is without a majority of its own in the Lok Sabha, the party’s conduct is the same in the House as it was when it had 303 MPs. The BJP considers the Lok Sabha its den. This is reflected in the almost domineering way that the BJP conducts in the House.
The Union Minister for Home Affairs, Amit Shah, held the floor in the Lok Sabha to make key strategic interventions during the first day of the debate. He ensured that neither Singh nor Jaishankar were interrupted. At any slight hint of interruptions, Shah charged with threats like: “It will be difficult for me to counsel my members when their leaders speak tomorrow.” At that, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla sported a smile.
The refrain was clearly meant to convey that the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, would be disrupted when he speaks if the Ministers were disturbed as they spoke.
Observers were amused that Jaishankar could speak with comfort in the absence of any noise, even though the Opposition clearly had the foreign policy plank to hit him with.
Many gathered the sense that the Opposition benches were not prepared to go the whole hog in attacking the government for operational lapses and clearly wanted to steer clear of questioning the armed forces or diplomacy in their attacks on the government.
Opposition Weathers the Storm
Despite the histrionic-heavy counters, Opposition held its ground. The Deputy Leader of the Congress Party in Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi, isn’t a particularly masterful orator and definitely not in league with the likes of Rajnath Singh. But on Monday, he revealed himself as a calm mercenary, hitting the ruling BJP where it hurt the most.
Gogoi probed the abrupt ceasefire announcement, which happens to be unsettling even the hardcore cadre of the party and saffron flagbearers.
Gogoi seemed to sum up the sentiments of heart-broken BJP supporters in the aftermath of the ceasefire, stating that while the armed forces had asserted Indian supremacy, "Your declared aim was to take back the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK), why did you agree to the ceasefire?"
Indeed, Singh had said in his speech earlier that the objective of the Operation Sindoor wasn’t a war with Pakistan but punishing patrons of terror.
But hypernationalists spawned by the saffron brigade, having already snacked on two surgical strike instalments, were waiting for the big feast - the taking of PoK. Television channels made them believe that the third strike would be more more grand. Many were visibly crestfallen after seeing that only an advanced version of the Balakot strike was offered with Operation Sindoor.
A Bid to Protect Brand Modi
The significance of Operation Sindoor lies in the BJP's projection of 'Brand Modi'. The appeal of Brand Modi, which has given the BJP a rich electoral harvest since 2014, rests on three legs—muscular nationalism, foreign policy, and welfarism.
Within the party, there are concerns that if any of the legs are bruised, the sole poll mascot of the party could lose his sheen, just ahead of the Bihar Assembly Elections. It may also jeopardise the BJP’s grand plans for the 2029 Lok Sabha elections and several state polls in the next three years.
Debates on Operation Sindoor directly impact two of these legs. They question not just legitimacy of the move or its success but the heavy handed line of political philosophy that underlines such acts.
The BJP leaders have already been in a spot explaining India’s fast-paced normalisation of ties with China with which there was a border standoff for almost five years.
Trump reiterating his peacemaker claims and constantly hyphenating India and Pakistan has also been a sour thumb for the government. The fact that Pakistan, instead of being shunned by world leaders, is being courted by them hasn't gone down well either.
The BJP's use of memes and short video clips in building political narratives since the 2014 Lok Sabha elections is unmissable. But the party's dominance on the social media platforms where its official and unofficial mercenaries ridiculed Opposition leaders and targeted dissenters has been dwindling through successive Lok Sabha elections.
Now, the Opposition has also honed its skills in digital warfare with memes, influencers and video clips. Their target is Modi.
They are questioning his achievements in the foreign policy sphere and national security. The BJP, long used to play in offence, is now on the defensive. And this perhaps is what worries the party workers and leaders the most.
(Manish Anand is a senior Delhi-based journalist with over two decades of covering parliament and politics. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)