FO slams Indian parliament debate on ‘Operation Sindoor’ for distorting facts

The Foreign Office (FO) on Wednesday assailed and rejected the Indian parliament’s debate on “Operation Sindoor”, claiming that the remarks made in the Lok Sabha “distort facts, justify aggression, and glorify conflict for domestic consumption”.

The two countries entered a brief but intense military escalation after India, without evidence, blamed Pakistan for the April 22 Pahalgam attack. On May 6–7, New Delhi launched air strikes that killed civilians, followed by a week-long missile exchange. A US-brokered ceasefire ended the war.

During Tuesday’s debate, Indian Home Minister Amit Shah claimed that security forces killed three “Pakistanis” involved in the Pahalgam attack in Operation Mahadev, Reuters reported. “I want to tell … the entire nation that these were the three terrorists who killed our citizens … and now all three have been killed,” Shah told parliament during the discussion.

In a statement issued today on the Indian parliament debate, FO spokesperson Ambassador Shafqat Ali Khan said: “Pakistan categorically rejects the baseless assertions and provocative claims made by the Indian leaders during the Lok Sabha debate on the so-called ‘Operation Sindoor’. These statements reflect a dangerous tendency to distort facts, justify aggression and glorify conflict for domestic consumption.

“The world knows that India attacked Pakistan without any verifiable evidence or a credible investigation into the Pahalgam Attack. During the intervening night of May 6 and 7, 2025, India’s targeting of the alleged terrorist infrastructure resulted actually in the martyrdom of innocent men, women, and children. India failed to achieve any of its strategic objectives. On the other hand, Pakistan’s resounding success in neutralising the Indian fighter jets and military targets is an indisputable fact.”

He said that “instead of misleading their compatriots, the Indian leaders would be well-advised to acknowledge the losses incurred by their armed forces and accept the active role played by the third parties in realising the ceasefire”.

The FO spokesperson said that India had not used the immediate offer made by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif for a transparent and independent probe into the Pahalgam Attack but had instead chosen the “path of belligerence and aggression”.

He further added that India had “acted as a judge, jury and executioner at the same time” and thus in the backdrop of all this, “any claims regarding the so-called ‘Operation Mahadev’ do not hold any significance for us”.

“The account given by the Indian home minister is replete with fabrications, leading to serious questions about its credibility. Is it a mere coincidence that the alleged perpetrators of the Pahalgam Attack were killed at the start of the Lok Sabha debate?”

The FO statement also criticised the Indian government for its statements about establishing a “new normal” in bilateral relations through the strikes and rubbished New Delhi’s narrative of “nuclear blackmail” on the part of Pakistan, calling such claims “a misleading and self-serving construct” that were “an attempt to veil its own escalatory impulses while shifting blame onto Pakistan”.

“For us, the only ‘normal’ in bilateral relations is respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, and adherence to the principles and purposes of the UN Charter,” the statement read.

The FO said it was “well known that Pakistan deterred India through its conventional capabilities, affirming that discipline and restraint remain its guiding principles”.

The FO spokesperson also once again expressed disapproval of the “misplaced assertions” by the Indian leadership regarding the Indus Waters Treaty. “India’s decision to hold the treaty in abeyance shows its blatant disregard for the sanctity of international treaties, and strikes at a fundamental pillar of regional cooperation,” the spokesperson said.

He added that India should adhere to the terms of the agreement rather than “taking pride in a unilateral and illegal move”.

“India’s continued reliance on disinformation, jingoism, and chest-thumping risks destabilising South Asia,” the FO stated, reiterating that Pakistan was a “responsible” nation and reaffirming its commitment to “peace, regional stability and a meaningful dialogue for resolution of all outstanding issues”.