A very insightful interview. I obviously don’t agree with some of Ajai Sahni’s analysis of Pakistan. His fears about an Islamist takeover of Bangladesh also seem overblown.
However, he does make the important point that the Indian government is reluctant to blame Pakistan for the Red Fort attack because that would box them into resuming “Operation Sindoor”.ย “Operation Sindoor” obviously didn’t go well for them the first time (contrary to the bluster of right-wing Indians on BP). Sahni notes that the onlyย countries that accepted India’s narrative without reservation were Israel and the Taliban.ย Pakistan, meanwhile, is currently friends with both the US and China.
Karan Thapar asked him about the suicide attack in Islamabad on Tuesday and his reaction to the Pakistani government blaming India. Sahni replied that the default in India is to blame Pakistan while the default in Pakistan is to blame India.ย Neither side’s domestic audience requires evidence.ย However, in this case, the Indian government doesn’t want to blame Pakistan because that would require them to declare war on Pakistan (as per their own “new normal” from May) and such a declaration would have consequences.