Following the deadly terrorist attack on April 22 in Jammu and Kashmir that killed 26 tourists, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is granting the armed forces extensive autonomy to respond. Tensions are high as India and Pakistan have been exchanging fire along the Line of Control since the attack.

According to reports, Modi has authorized the military to independently determine the method, targets, and timing of their response to the Kashmir attack.

Modi is scheduled to hold another meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) on Wednesday to strategize India’s next steps.

In a post on X, Modi declared India’s intent to “identify, track and punish every terrorist, their handlers and their backers,” vowing to “pursue them to the ends of the earth.”

Defense Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif told Reuters that Pakistan has mobilized its forces, indicating that retaliation is “something which is imminent now.”

The Resistance Front (TRF), an extremist group with ties to the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, claimed responsibility for the attack in Pahalgam. Lashkar-e-Taiba, known for its involvement in the , has links to the Pakistani military and collaborates with Pakistan’s Directorate for Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI).

Pakistan has denied any involvement in the recent attack.

The attack, the deadliest on India since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, has escalated tensions between the two nuclear-armed nations.

Chietigj Bajpaee of Chatham House noted that an Indian military response aligns with the Modi government’s assertive foreign policy, as demonstrated after previous terrorist attacks.

Bajpaee suggested that a surgical strike or airstrike is the most probable form of retaliation, employing a measured approach to minimize collateral damage and civilian casualties while preventing escalation to a broader conflict.

He cautioned that accidental escalation remains a risk, and a “broader tit-for-tat military escalation cannot be ruled out.”

Despite limited prior outreach from Modi, strained relations have resulted from escalations in 2016 and 2019.

Sadanand Dhume of the American Enterprise Institute stated that Modi is facing pressure to deliver a strong response.

Dhume said that the Indian public is demanding a forceful response to the terrorist attack in Kashmir, putting Modi under pressure to strike , which has a history of supporting attacks on India.

India has already suspended the Indus Water Treaty of 1960, a crucial water-sharing agreement. Pakistan intends to challenge this suspension and is taking the issue to the World Bank, according to Pakistan’s Minister of State for Law and Justice.

Pakistan considers impeding the free flow of water an act of war.

The rivalry between India and Pakistan originates from the 1947 partition of British India, which created Pakistan and India. Jammu and Kashmir were given the choice to join either nation. Kashmir chose to join India in return for protection against Pakistani militias, leading to three wars between India and Pakistan over the territory since 1947.

India and Pakistan possess an estimated combined total of 342 nuclear warheads, according to the Arms Control Association.