India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday firmly denied that the country’s recent ceasefire with Pakistan was the result of external pressure, specifically rejecting claims by U.S. President Donald Trump that he brokered the truce.
Speaking in Parliament at the opening of a debate on the April 22 terrorist attack in Kashmir that killed 26 tourists, Singh said India ended its military operation in May only after achieving all of its political and military objectives. The attack had triggered a fierce four-day conflict with Pakistan, marking the most serious military engagement between the two nuclear-armed neighbours in nearly three decades.
“India halted its operation because all the objectives studied before and during the conflict had been fully achieved,” Singh said. “To suggest that the operation was called off under pressure is baseless and entirely incorrect.”
Singh’s remarks come in response to President Trump’s public statements earlier this month claiming credit for mediating the ceasefire. While Pakistan acknowledged and thanked the U.S. for what it described as a diplomatic breakthrough, Indian officials insist the ceasefire was agreed directly between New Delhi and Islamabad, without U.S. involvement.
The conflict followed the deadliest terrorist assault on Indian civilians since the 2008 Mumbai attacks. New Delhi has accused Pakistani nationals of carrying out the April killings and has blamed Islamabad for supporting the attackers — a charge Pakistan has strongly denied, calling instead for an independent international investigation.
During the May confrontation, both countries deployed fighter jets, drones, missiles, and heavy artillery, leading to dozens of fatalities and heightened global concern over the possibility of escalation.
Indian opposition parties, meanwhile, have criticised the government over what they describe as an intelligence failure in the lead-up to the Kashmir attack and the subsequent inability to apprehend those responsible. Opposition leaders are expected to raise these issues during the ongoing parliamentary debate, along with allegations that Indian aircraft were shot down during the conflict.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration has come under scrutiny not only for its handling of the Kashmir attack, but also for appearing to bow to international pressure to halt hostilities. Singh’s comments, however, aimed to reaffirm India’s autonomy in national security decisions.
“The decision to end the operation was ours and ours alone,” Singh told lawmakers.
