Islamabad/New Delhi: In a dramatic midnight press conference, Pakistan’s Information and Broadcasting Minister Ataullah Tarar alleged that India is preparing to launch a military strike against Pakistan within the next 24 to 36 hours, in retaliation for the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam that left 26 civilians dead.
Citing what he described as “credible intelligence,” Tarar warned that any Indian military action would be met with a “decisive” response and would have “catastrophic consequences” for the region.
He accused India of acting on “baseless and concocted allegations” and adopting a unilateral and dangerous posture in South Asia.
Pakistan has credible intelligence that India intends carrying out military action against Pakistan in the next 24-36 hours on the pretext of baseless and concocted allegations of involvement in the Pahalgam incident.
Indian self assumed hubristic role of Judge, Jury and… pic.twitter.com/WVW6yhxTJ0— Attaullah Tarar (@TararAttaullah) April 29, 2025
“India’s self-assumed role as judge, jury, and executioner is reckless and unacceptable,” said Tarar. “Pakistan has itself suffered immensely from terrorism and has always condemned it in all its forms, globally.”
Tarar said Pakistan had offered an impartial investigation into the Pahalgam massacre through an international commission of experts, but claimed India had rejected diplomacy in favor of confrontation. He called on the international community to take note and hold India accountable for any escalation.
Meanwhile, in New Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reportedly granted the Indian armed forces complete freedom to determine the response to the Pahalgam terror attack, including the choice of targets and timing. The decision was taken during a high-level security meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan.
Sources suggest that Modi reaffirmed India’s firm resolve to combat terrorism, stating that he had “complete faith and confidence” in the military’s capabilities to deliver a “crushing blow.”
Notably, the Pahalgam attack (on 22 April), described as one of the deadliest in recent years, was carried out by operatives of The Resistance Front (TRF), a proxy of the Pakistan-based terror outfit Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Eyewitness accounts revealed that the victims, mostly Hindu pilgrims and locals, were singled out based on their religious identity before being executed in front of their families.
The brutality of the massacre has triggered widespread outrage across India, fueling public and political calls for a forceful response. The situation has drawn comparisons to the 2019 Pulwama attack, after which India carried out airstrikes on Jaish-e-Mohammed terror camps in Pakistan’s Balakot.
