Where there’s smoke there’s fire

EDITORIAL: The Washington Post’s hard-hitting exposé of Indian intelligence’s alleged infiltration into Pakistan’s petty underworld, and how it leverages these contacts to carry out assassinations within the country, appears to have opened a new chapter in the unending and ever-evolving shadow wars between the neighbours.

The Indian establishment has been rubbishing such reports since they first hit the international press in early 2024, of course, just like it’s been dismissing strong reactions from the Canadian and American governments following hits on Sikh leaders in those countries.

But where there’s smoke there’s fire, and now there’s enough evidence for the international community to put two and two together and see that Islamabad was right all along about how Indian intelligence has been trying to put its illusions of regional dominance into action, especially since Modi and his hardliners took power in Delhi in 2014. Now Pakistan must come up with a counter-strategy, to protect its citizens and prevent further violations of its sovereignty and international law.

First and foremost, it must adopt a strong diplomatic strategy. Islamabad should mobilise its embassies and foreign missions to present the findings of the report to key international players and institutions, including the United Nations.

By emphasising repeated violations of sovereignty and potential threats to global peace, Pakistan should build a case for international condemnation of such acts. This must be coupled with consistent messaging that highlights Pakistan’s willingness to adhere to international norms while seeking accountability.

At the same time, Pakistan must also reinforce its internal security measures. Strengthening counterintelligence capabilities is imperative to preempt and neutralise such covert operations. Security agencies should collaborate more effectively with local law enforcement agencies to secure vulnerable regions and individuals targeted by foreign entities. Increased surveillance, intelligence-sharing, and proactive action can help thwart potential threats.

These are very fragile times for Pakistan. The official resolve to crush TTP’s insurgency threatens to open a hostile front on the western border. And we know only too well how Indian intelligence and its surrogates are poised to exploit all such developments.

Yet now that Indian interference, in blatant violation of all sorts of tenets of international law, has been laid bare for the world to see, it is in the interest of everybody to get New Delhi to back off; especially since western countries have also suffered at the hands of Indian intelligence’s antics.

Such covert actions are never possible unless they’re sanctioned right from the top — Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Ajit Doval. Going forward, instead of engaging in a tit-for-tat escalation that benefits nobody at the end of the day, the Pakistani government should display maturity by raising international concern over this matter. But it must also make sure that its own agencies learn a very valuable lesson from all this, and never allow themselves to be blind-sighted again.

The Indian government is clearly out of its depth. And now that it has over-reached, it needs to be put back in its place. It’s already facing stiff pressure from the American and Canadian governments. Now it’s time to take its meddling in other countries to the UN to trigger a much-needed, long overdue debate.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025