Surgical strike, air strikes, limited conflicts: 3 options India would take to avenge Pulwama

New Delhi, Feb 16: In the aftermath of the ghastly Pulwama attack that claimed the lives of 40 CRPF jawans, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he had given the forces a free hand to deal with the situation.

India on Friday withdrew the Most Favoured Nation status given to Pakistan and also upped the diplomatic pressure on Pakistan. Officials tell OneIndia that the counter to Pakistan would be two-pronged. We would step up the pressure both diplomatically and also on the military side.

National Security Advisor, Ajit Doval held several high level meetings here to discuss the next course of action. There would be many more meetings today as well. During the various meetings, several officials were in favour of air strikes.

While some were in favour of a surgical strike, others were against it as it was felt that there will not be an element of surprise as the enemy would be well prepared. The other option discussed was regarding a limited cross border strike. The intention would be to dismantle terror infrastructure.

Highly placed sources said that the most likely option would to carry out precision air strikes in Pakistan occupied Kashmir against the non-state actors. Most of the officials part of the high level deliberations were in favour of this option as the preparation required would be minimal.

Similar discussions were also held in the aftermath of the Uri attack. This time too, officials were unanimous in their decision to target the terror infrastructure and also ensure that there are no civilian casualties on the other side.

The operations would be tough and there would be a lot of risk involved. Normally after a major strike, terror camps across the border areas are shut down and operatives are moved back. However officials say that the risk has to be taken and a very strong message needs to be sent out.

During the discussions, officials also discussed the possibility of a limited conflict. During the deliberations today, officials would further discuss the options and also debate on what extent India would be willing to escalate the conflict to.