Anyone who knows Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, General Upendra Dwivedi, or Admiral Dinesh Tripathi will realize that they are all apolitical yet unafraid to speak their minds to the political leadership when it comes to national security. ACM Singh is a classic test fighter pilot who lives for the day and could not care less if the political leadership gets upset with his bindass attitude. General Dwivedi is a typical OG, dyed-in-wool green, most comfortable when with his troops. He is shy to a point but asserts himself when required and can be ruthless. Admiral Tripathi is a total badass who believes in the lethal power of the Navy and was ready to wipe out Karachi port on the morning of May 10—until the Pakistani DGMO pleaded for peace.
They report to a national security team headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan. One common denominator with all four is that they know how to walk a razor’s edge and have the daring to take any decision when it comes to national security—ready to face the consequences. Together, they make a formidable hunting pack.
On the morning of May 10, while appreciating the Indian armed forces’ response, PM Modi congratulated Gen Dwivedi and ACM Singh. He then looked at Admiral Tripathi and said: “Humne aapke mooh se niwala cheen liya, aapko mauka phir milega” (“I have snatched the morsel out of your mouth, but your turn will come”). This statement came soon after the Indian Navy was told to stand down from launching a BrahMos missile attack on Karachi port. Unafraid that Pakistan could retaliate with a missile strike on his home state, Gujarat, in response to the Karachi move, the PM gave the three chiefs a total free hand and was prepared for the worst. The three chiefs may have had second thoughts—but not the PM.
While many armchair strategists in state-funded think tanks may feel that ACM Singh’s remarks in Bengaluru on Saturday were overstated, the fact is that the Air Chief spoke only about confirmed Pakistani aircraft, radar, and AEW&C platform kills during the May 7–10 conflict. He did not account for other hard evidence. National security planners and intelligence agencies know that a hangar housing C-130 Hercules VVIP transport aircraft was hit hard at Chaklala airbase in Rawalpindi on May 10, and two F-16s were destroyed on the ground in Jacobabad. The northern PAF command-and-control network went blind after Nur Khan (Chaklala) was hit at 2.30 am on May 10. ACM Singh also did not include “half kills” in his remarks.
Such was the fear of the Indian Army’s M777 Excalibur shells and Warmate loitering ammunition that Pakistani troops abandoned posts near the LoC and fled. The IAF’s response forced all prized PAF assets to be moved towards the western border with Iran and Afghanistan. For that very reason, an S-400 missile was used to take out a wide-bodied aircraft 315 kilometers from the Indo-Pak border in Punjab, Pakistan. The hit aircraft was a Saab AEW&C platform, though many in the IAF believe it could also have been a Dassault Falcon 20 ELINT aircraft. If that were not enough, hardly any ship or submarine of the Pakistan Navy was out at sea to counter the Indian Navy’s armada, with all enemy vessels moving towards Gwadar in fear of the Indian response.
Although PM Modi’s critics and sundry professors may taunt him for stopping the armed response due to alleged US intervention, the last Indian BrahMos strike hit Bholari airbase at noon on May 10—after which all mission objectives were complete.
Since Field Marshal Asim Munir was DG (ISI) when the Pulwama suicide bombing took place on February 14, 2019, and Army Chief when the Pahalgam Hindu tourist massacre was enacted at the instructions of Rawalpindi on April 22, 2025, it is clear that Pakistan will attempt another terror attack in the Kashmir Valley or the Indian hinterland in the near future. While Munir may get promoted to Pakistan’s President or Field Marshal Administrator, it seems that the Indian Navy will get its turn after all.
