The country is still grieving in the wake of the Pulwama attack. On February 14, 2019, 40 CRPF soldiers were martyred by the terrorist group, JeM (Jaish-e-Mohammed), in the Pulwama district of Jammu and Kashmir.
Grief turned to anger and on the 26th of February, 2019, the IAF carried out an air strike near JeM’s terror camp.
Air Strike Carried Out By India
The terror camp was located in Balakot. Early Tuesday morning, the IAF dropped bombs weighing 1000 kgs in Balakot, supposedly where JeM’s training camp was located.
The camp was hidden deep in the forests, away from civilians. According to India, there were no casualties and approximately 350 militants were wiped out.
The attack was mainly carried out in response to credible intelligence that JeM was planning to attempt another suicide attack in various parts of the country. Hence, this strike was imperative to prevent loss of any more lives.
Pakistan’s Response
In response to the air strikes carried out by India, Pak PM gave a statement stating it would respond to “This act of aggression” at a time and place of its choosing.
However, India clarified that this was a non-military preemptive strike. Tensions between the two countries have never run so high, since the partition. In response, EU has urged both the countries to exercise restraint.
Also Read: Demystified: Would It Be Sensible To Take Away J&K’s Article 35A That Separates Them From India?
Possible Options For India In Case Of War
However, if Pakistan is dimwitted enough to carry a retaliatory attack on India, and a possible situation of war takes place, this is exactly what would happen: India would declare a state of emergency under Article 356.
This article states that if there are any internal or external threats to the nation, the government has the power to declare a state of emergency.
Everyday lives would be disrupted, the country would come under the President’s rule, the Parliament would shut down, governmental institutions and colleges too would shut down.
Since everything would come to a standstill, we as citizens should put a halt to our political preferences and try to not actively choose sides. A war outside is bad enough. We do not need our country to get divided internally as well.
What The Citizens Can Do In Such A Situation
Under National Emergency, the right to freedom is suspended. It also centralizes power to the central government. The citizens of the country would be forced to take cover and hide.
Security would be tightened and a curfew would be instated. In addition, food and water would have to be rationed. The poor would have to be placed in shelters and the movement of people would be severely restricted.
Moreover, the most important thing we can do is support the army in any way that we can and not interfere in their work.
That includes not posting unwanted and unneeded opinions on social media to attract attention and gain 15 minutes of fame.
We should also be careful in handing out our personal information on social media for the sake of national security. Moreover, people should remain alert in such a time of distress.
Although, the terror nation has promised retaliation, it will lose all credibility in the eyes of international bodies such as the UN, NATO, and ICJ, if it decides to carry out its promise.
Moreover, war is costly, and not only in monetary terms. Despite the anti-war sentiment shared by Pakistani’s, it is clear that democracy has taken a backseat, and the army is going to exercise its free will. On the other hand, one country prepares for an attack, and the other celebrates #SurgicalStrike2.0.
Image Credits: Google Images
Sources: The Hindu, Economic Times, The Indian Express, + others
Find the blogger @JhanviShah
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