Operation Mahadev: A Decisive Strike in Kashmir’s Counter-Terrorism Landscape
Operation Mahadev got carried out after a painstaking two-month-long intelligence operation commencing on May 22, 2025, a month after the Pahalgam attack. On receiving critical human intelligence on terrorists being present in a gridlocked area of Dachigam, the IB launched the manhunt. Some local nomads helped with relevant tip-offs, thereby assisting the larger intelligence mosaic.
From May 22 to July 22, the IB and the Indian Army put their efforts continuously to verify the information. They used special equipment that could pick up ultra signals in the tough Dachigam terrain while officers and jawans were marching barefooted amidst freezing cold, high-altitude conditions, trying to get these signals. Sensors picked up the terrorists on July 22 after almost two weeks of monitoring their movements. Such a long period has ensured the integration of human intelligence with advanced signal interception and the forensic analysis of captured facilitators, which is the testimony to a very sophisticated, multi-dimensional intelligence fusion capability. This constitutes a vast improvement in India’s ability to track and neutralize high-value targets in complex environments.
Further developments in the investigation saw the National Investigation Agency arrest two persons, Bashir and Parvez, on June 22, 2025. The suspects had harboured the terrorists and had given crucial information relating to their weapons. More than 1,000 persons, including tourists, pony operators, and locals, were questioned for over 3,000 hours as part of the larger investigation. Early arrests of the harbingers of terrorists well before the final kinetic operation pointed to an aggressive attempt to take apart the support networks for that terror ecosystem. This reflected a change in emphasis toward comprehensive disruption rather than just eliminating direct perpetrators.
The July 28, 2025 Encounter: A Coordinated Offensive
The decisive encounter of Operation Mahadev took place on July 28, 2025, in the Lidwas-Dara area, particularly the Mulnar area of Harwan near Dachigam National Park in Srinagar. The forest terrain was highly arduous, being thickly wooded and mountainous, and posed monumental challenges to the security forces.
The operation was conducted jointly and with great finesse under the coordination of Chinar Corps of the Indian Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police, and CRPF with 4 Para of the Army having operational role. The cordon and search operation were commenced, with the area being sealed to prevent escape of the militants. The encounter commenced with the militants opening fire upon the security forces, precipitating an intense engagement of fire. To negate the challenges posed by the dense forest, the forces efficiently resorted to tracking the movements of the militants through drones. The battle was lengthy and continued till the last assailants had been neutralized.
Neutralizing the Threat: Identities Confirmed, Justice Delivered
The encounter operation successfully neutralized three very important terrorist personalities. Security agencies have identified these terrorists as Suleiman Shah (aka Hashim Musa, Faisal Jaat, Sulaiman, Asif), Abu Hamza (aka Jibran or Zibran Bhai), and Yasir (Hamza Afghani or Afghan). All three entities were confirmed as being from the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Suleiman Shah, the ‘A’ category commander of LeT, was the mastermind behind the Pahalgam attack on April 22. Jibran was also suspected of being involved in the Sonamarg Tunnel attack in October 2024. Hamza Afghani is a foreign fighter and a former Pakistani army commando.
Ballistic evidence conclusively confirmed their direct involvement in the Pahalgam attack. The FSL report precisely and conclusively established that cartridges recovered from the Pahalgam attack site matched with three rifles recovered during the encounter–two AK-series rifles and one M4 rifle. The use of foreign-made weapons, such as Romanian and American rifles, was yet another pointer to an international conspiracy.
As irreparable evidence of cross-border terrorism stood testimony with the recovery of Pakistani voter IDs, chocolates made in Pakistan, and a former Pakistan army commando amongst the neutralized terrorists, thereby strengthening India’s plea of Pakistan being directly involved in nurturing militancy in Kashmir and thus gain diplomatic leverage. Such factual evidence makes it difficult for Pakistan to dismiss its involvement, thereby giving India a firmer foothold in international fora. Further, the quick, conclusive forensic matching of weapons recovered from terrorists with cartridges from the Pahalgam crime scene reflected the apogee of investigative acumen. Such forensic validation of the operation built a strong legal and evidentiary basis for success, pre-empting allegations of fake encounters and endowing credibility to India’s counter-terrorism activity.
The Government’s Narrative: A Resounding Success
The Indian government quickly declared Operation Mahadev a grand success and a testimony to India’s will against terrorism. The Prime Minister congratulated the armed forces for playing a crucial role in killing cowardly terrorists and termed the operation as a major success. Union Home Minister Amit Shah told the Lok Sabha that the three LeT terrorists had been eliminated, declaring that Operation Mahadev, along with Operation Sindoor, had, “provided the most precise and prompt response ever given in the wake of any terror attack in the world”.
Shah explained that the words “Har Har Mahadev” used with the operation were not intended only as a religious slogan but were traditionally utilized as a war cry during Shivaji Maharaj’s battle against the Mughals to denote India’s retaliatory measures against attacks on her sovereignty. The Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, Manoj Sinha, also complimented the security forces for carrying out the mission with success.
Opposition’s Scrutiny: Demands for Transparency and Accountability
Despite the opposing hue of government celebrations, Operation Mahadev confronted immediate and sharp scrutiny from opposition political leaders and commentators with the subject underscoring the deepest politicization of national security issues. Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra questions the intelligence lapses that had preceded the Pahalgam attack and the apparent lack of security for the victims in Baisaran Valley.
She also accused the Government of “granting refuge” to terrorists and raised some interesting questions as to why it was US President Donald Trump who announced the ceasefire in Operation Sindoor instead of India. Gandhi further contested interruptions that referred to the victims as “Hindu”; she asserted that the victims were “Bhartiya” (Indians) as part of an effort to accentuate national solidarity over religious identity.
In a decidedly critical op-ed published in the Deccan Herald, eminent journalist Bharat Bhushan proceeds to analyse Operation Mahadev and thereby questions the exact timing of the operation, which coincided with parliamentary debate on Operation Sindoor. He describes the promulgated version as an “unrealistic story” and solicits independent forensic proof to back up the assertions.
Bhushan had once famously stated, “Dead people say nothing, they become silent forever, the truth dies with them,” implying a complete absence of transparency in such operations. He had also demanded accountability for past intelligence failures in attacks, implying a buck-passing culture. Former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti had also cited that security agencies “rounded up” and detained local citizens “without food” as collective punishment, whereas the local citizenry had condemned the Pahalgam attack.
International Perspectives: Recognition and Scrutiny
International attention to Kashmir remains dual-pronged. The UN Security Council recognizes terrorism and condemns it and its perpetrators, while human rights organizations continue to raise deep concerns over alleged systemic human rights violations by Indian security forces. It is a complex diplomatic challenge for India. Despite the Indian government’s furnishing of detailed evidences to confirm the identities of the terrorists so neutralized, both internal Indian critical analyses and international media’s emphasis on terms such as “unverified claims” and “disinformation” constitute a continuing handicap to India’s credibility in managing information pertaining to sensitive security operations.
Evolving Dynamics of India-Pakistan Relations in the Aftermath
Operation Mahadev is of great importance for Indo-Pakistani relations, with tensions all through the bilateral scenario. The presence of Pakistani nationals and materials of Pakistani origin with the neutralized terrorists weighed in to indict cross-border terrorism by the Indian side-a charge consistently rejected by Pakistan. Therefore, the monitoring report, confirmed by the UNSC, in which the link of TRF and LeT was confirmed, gave international weight to Indian claims. The international press has also spoken of “confusion” and “eroded trust” spawned by unverified claims during the war, thereby making the narrative complicated. Once again, when Priyanka Gandhi questioned the role of US President Donald Trump in the ceasefire, it raised the issue of outside influence or mediation in possible future escalations.
In contrast with India’s claim of “non-escalatory” strikes during Operation Sindoor, continued accusations, counter-narratives, and Pakistan-based counter-claims sustain the probability of an escalatory cycle. One response stemming from justified counter-terrorism actions can lead to further counter-responses, keeping the region destabilized and de-escalation processes difficult. Forensic evidence against Pakistan in Operation Mahadev will certainly strengthen India’s diplomatic pressure, which can then result in additional friction.
This, therefore, states that India’s actions remain resolute but are set within a bilateral relationship so unstable that any move is susceptible to triggering another destabilizing action. Apart from this, the explicit mentioning of Pahalgam attacks and TRF being linked to LeT in a Monitoring Report of the UN Security Council, alongside human rights concerns being voiced by international organizations, ensures that the Kashmir issue stays kept alive on the international spectrum. This, therefore, brings greater scrutiny on India with regard to counter-terrorism efficiency as well as enforcement of human rights norms, thereby affecting India’s diplomatic stature worldwide.
Conclusion
Operation Mahadev stands as a milestone in the continuing guerrilla warfare in Jammu and Kashmir, and with it, the land and people of India have a stronger claim of justice. It validates a new era in intelligence operations, intense planning, and coordination at all levels between the Indian Army, J&K Police, and CRPF. The Indian forces gave justice instantaneously and crushed terror networks on the ground with undeniable forensic or material evidence against the mastermind of the Pahalgam attack and his associates with Pakistan.
This, in many ways, can be viewed as proof of the effectiveness of the changing paradigm of counter-terrorism in India, which is no longer reactive but proactive— prevention-oriented, intelligence-driven, and holistic in prosecuting the entire terror ecosystem in both Kashmir and across the border. This combined approach of kinetic strike, constant intelligence gathering, and disruption of the terror network strives to keep the cost of terror high for its sponsors and deny them any safe haven. However, the many challenges that Kashmir presents are highlighted in the aftermath of Operation Mahadev.
In terms of being very far away, it also exhibits the post-scenario challenges in the Kashmir conflict. The politicization of national security issues, intermittent calls for transparency from the opposition and civil society, and constant minding by international human rights organizations set off a scale to operate a thin balance mechanism between operational effectiveness and democratic accountability in India. On one hand, resistance against terror recruitment in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir might be an oblique hope for long-term stability. On the other hand, the high-stakes continued relations between India and Pakistan and the internationalization of the Kashmir issue at large call for an able and agile foreign policy.
