India Acknowledges Aircraft Losses Against Pakistan, but Denies Six Planes being Shot Down - Statement by Anil Chauhan, India's Defence Chief
Indy's top dog, Gen'ral Anil Chauhan, revealed that some of India's fighter jets went down during the skirmish with Pakistan last May. This admission came during Gen'ral Chauhan's interviews at the Shangri-La Dialogue security forum in Singapore, weeks after the intense combat Between the South Asian neighbors.
The heated conflict involved jaw-dropping actions like fighter planes and cruise missiles, marking the most dramatic exchange between the two nations since bloody times past. Indian officials refused to acknowledge or deny Pakistani claims of downing Indian jets, but now, it's out in the open.
The Unique Battle
India initiated airstrikes on Pakistani territory, alleging these strikes targeted "terror infrastructure" as reprisal for the horrific Pahalgam attack that claimed 26 innocent lives. Indian authorities blamed armed groups, backed by Pakistan, for the attack.
An armed group known as The Resistance Front (TRF) claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam killings and was accused by India of being a splinter group of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Pakistan denied any involvement, condemning the attack, and calling for a neutral investigation.
India asserted to have targeted six cities in Pakistan during the first day of the conflict, but Pakistan initially claimed to have downed six Indian jets. However, a senior Pakistan official later informed Al Jazeera that five aircraft were shot down.
India never confirmed or denied these Pakistani claims, with Air Marshal AK Bharti, India's director general of air operations, stating "Losses are a part of combat."
The Indian embassy in China dismissed reports of downed jets as "disinformation."
The Dance of War
Cross-border attacks along the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border between India- and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, rattled the entire region, raising fears of a nuclear war. The situation intensified when, on May 10th, U.S. President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire between the two countries, potentially averting a "nuclear disaster."
Both India and Pakistan claim Kashmir in full, administering only parts of the Muslim-majority territory.
Gen'ral Chauhan addressed the downing of Indian fighter jets, admitting that losses occurred during the first day of fighting without providing specifics. He went on to discuss the vigorous response that followed, emphasizing the precision of Indian air strikes on Pakistani airbases. Islamabad acknowledged that their airbases suffered minimal losses, but refused to admit any airplane losses.
Addressing the risk of nuclear war, Gen'nal Chauhan assured that India had not considered using atomic weapons during the conflict. Similarly, Pakistan's chairman of joint chiefs of staff, General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, stated that there was no perceived risk on their end.
China's Role
Chauhan mentioned that Pakistan enjoys a close alliance with China but that there were no signs that Beijing aided Islamabad during the conflict. China borders India to the north and northeast and controls Aksai Chin, a barely inhabited northeastern zone in Kashmir.
When asked about potential intelligence assistance from China, such as satellite imagery, Chauhan stated that such information is readily available and that Pakistan may have obtained it from other sources. However, Chauhan noted that almost 80% of Pakistan's military equipment in recent years had been procured from China.
Chinese fighter jets gained recognition during the conflict when media reports highlighted that Pakistan used Chinese-manufactured J-10C fighters in the air battle. The Chinese government remained tight-lipped regarding the J-10C's involvement, though state broadcaster CCTV posted on social media that the jets had achieved combat results for the first time.
The battle ended in a ceasefire, but Gen'ral Chauhan made it clear that India would respond with precision and decisiveness to any further attacks emanating from Pakistan. This new stance would keep the Indian military on high alert 24/7.
Political Reactions
The president of the Indian National Congress party, Mallikarjun Kharge, called for a review of India's defense preparedness, questioning the delay in acknowledging the loss of fighter jets. Kharge also claimed that the Pahalgam attack was a security and intelligence failure, demanding accountability.
However, Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center, highlighted that Chauhan's interviews did not dramatically change the narrative of the conflict. While revealing India's air losses, the interviews primarily emphasized the country's battlefield achievements, which were already well known.
Despite the controversies, the general public saluted the brave stands of the Indian military, calling for a comprehensive strategic review of the nation's defense policy.
- The breaking news of the conflict between India and Pakistan escalated to war-like conditions, with both countries engaging in a dance of war that could have potentially led to a nuclear disaster.
- During the heated political exchange, Chinese fighter jets, including the Chinese-manufactured J-10C fighters, were used in the air battle, adding a new dimension to the general-news report.
- In the aftermath of the conflict, the sports of politics featured intense debates, with political leaders like Mallikarjun Kharge of the Indian National Congress party questioning the government's handling of the situation, particularly the delay in acknowledging the loss of Indian fighter jets.
