New Delhi, India – In his first public remarks since the 88-hour military standoff with Pakistan, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval delivered a firm message to the world: India’s generosity and tolerance should never be mistaken for weakness. Speaking in the upcoming Discovery docuseries Declassified: Operation Sindoor, Doval said the operation was designed to destroy the terror camps responsible for the Pahalgam attack and to demonstrate India’s resolve to act decisively.
“Message to the world is very clear – India’s generosity or India being tolerant should not be mistaken for its weakness. India can take risks, India can hit hard, irrespective of the consequences,” Doval said in the documentary .
A Calculated Response to Terror
Operation Sindoor was launched in the early hours of May 7, 2025, as a direct response to the deadly Pahalgam terror attack on April 22, 2025, which claimed 26 lives . Indian forces carried out precision strikes on nine known terror infrastructure sites across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir .
“We had decided the objective of the operation as destruction of the enemy camps, particularly those who had been responsible for the Pahalgam attack,” Doval explained . The 88-hour military confrontation that followed saw Pakistan retaliate with drones, artillery, and missiles aimed at military and civilian targets. India’s counter-offensives, also conducted under Operation Sindoor, systematically dismantled Pakistani air defence systems and radar sites before ultimately striking Pakistani airbases .
Deterrence Through Action
Doval’s central argument was that deterrence is only effective when backed by a demonstrated willingness to act . The operation achieved several strategic objectives: it demolished Pakistan’s nuclear bluff, demonstrated that India has options under the nuclear threshold, and showed Pakistan that no target in the country is out of India’s reach .
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Notably, India ensured that no Pakistani military or civilian facility was targeted during the opening act, a distinction Doval described as demonstrating control rather than restraint born of hesitation . The conflict halted on the evening of May 10 when both sides reached an understanding, with Pakistan requesting an end to hostilities .
The Documentary
The two-part docuseries, premiering Saturday at 9 PM on Discovery and Discovery+, brings together India’s military and national security leadership to recount the decisions and events surrounding Operation Sindoor . It features firsthand accounts from those who oversaw India’s response .
Doval also warned against state-sponsored terrorism, stating, “We wanted Pakistan army to realise that this support to terrorism or inability to take effective action against the terrorists is something which is not tolerable to us” . He emphasized that India’s philosophies of Sarve Dharm Sambhav and Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam have been historically misinterpreted as weakness—a perception Operation Sindoor was designed to correct.
