General Asim Munir’s radical agenda: Pakistan’s deep state terror nexus exposed in Pahalgam attack

The recent terror attack in Pahalgam, which left 26 innocent people dead, including a foreign national from Nepal, starkly exposes Pakistan Army Chief General Asim Munir’s radical agenda and his deep involvement in sponsoring cross-border terrorism against India. While Islamabad continues to deny responsibility, clear intelligence, operational evidence, and recent provocative statements directly implicate Pakistan’s military establishment, led by General Munir, as the prime architect of this deadly strategy.

General Munir is increasingly recognised as a dangerous radical whose extremist views and provocative rhetoric have significantly escalated violence in Kashmir. His recent address at the Overseas Pakistanis Convention in Islamabad, invoking the divisive two-nation theory and labelling Kashmir as Pakistan’s “jugular vein”, was not mere political posturing. It was a calculated dog whistle to extremist elements operating under Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). By exploiting religious differences, General Munir sought to mobilise these terror networks as strategic assets in his broader agenda of destabilising India.

The attack in Pahalgam was meticulously orchestrated by The Resistance Front (TRF), a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) offshoot created by the ISI in 2019 specifically to evade international scrutiny. Unlike overtly religious terror groups such as the LeT and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), TRF is strategically branded as a domestic resistance group to avoid detection by bodies like the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). However, beneath this superficial veneer lies the unmistakable operational footprint of LeT, explicitly supported and guided by the ISI.

Intelligence assessments highlight Pakistan’s growing reliance on terror proxies due to its inability to confront India militarily. Pakistan’s strategic shift towards infiltrating terrorists primarily through southern Jammu—the so-called ‘Southern Strategy’—is evidence of Islamabad’s relentless attempt to create instability. Indian intelligence reveals around 100 terrorists positioned in 32 launch pads facing Jammu, with another 35 across 10 launch pads opposite Kashmir. This southern axis, less mountainous and more accessible, has witnessed over 50 infiltration attempts in the last six months alone, a clear indicator of Pakistan’s shifting tactical posture.

India is neither blind nor passive in response. The detailed intelligence regarding infiltration routes, launch pad locations, terrorist numbers, and drone recoveries underscores India’s robust strategic capabilities and proactive preparedness. The interception of 125 drones in 2023 alone, following 300 the previous year, demonstrates India’s technological vigilance and preparedness to thwart Pakistan’s nefarious designs.

Strategically, General Munir’s agenda is also influenced by broader geopolitical frustration. India’s deepening diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia and the United States—highlighted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent successful visit to Riyadh and US Vice President JD Vance’s diplomatic engagement in New Delhi—are major irritants for Munir and the Pakistani establishment. These diplomatic achievements isolate Islamabad further, compelling Munir to intensify terror activities to sabotage India’s growing international stature.

Adding complexity and international danger to the Pakistan Army Chief’s terror strategy, a Hamas delegation was recently facilitated by the ISI to visit the JeM headquarters in Bahawalpur, mere days before the Pahalgam massacre. This meeting was impossible without the explicit sanction and logistical support of the highest echelons of the Pakistan Army, its Chief and the ISI. This is the second such Hamas visit, with the first coming on Kashmir Solidarity Day on 5th February 2025. This indicates a sinister attempt at global terror networking, posing threats not only to India but also to regional and international stability.

Yet, the response within Kashmir has unequivocally rejected Pakistan’s terror tactics. Local Kashmiris from diverse religious backgrounds have unitedly condemned the attack, holding candle marches and using mosque loudspeakers to publicly denounce terrorism. This genuine grassroots rejection highlights the failure of General Munir’s attempt to portray terrorist violence as indigenous resistance.

India’s strategic preparedness and global diplomatic outreach must now converge into coordinated international action. Presenting irrefutable evidence of both ISI-TRF and ISI-Hamas coordination at international forums, including FATF and the United Nations, is imperative. India should robustly advocate for stringent global sanctions against Pakistan’s military and intelligence establishment, particularly targeting General Munir, for orchestrating state-sponsored terrorism.

Moreover, enhancing international intelligence-sharing arrangements with key global partners, including the United States, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Israel, is essential to dismantling Pakistan’s terror infrastructure effectively. Concurrently, intensifying surveillance, strengthening border security, and deploying advanced drone interception technologies are critical steps in ensuring operational security against infiltrations.

General Munir’s dangerous radicalism and Pakistan’s deep-state terror strategies require immediate global recognition and decisive countermeasures. Allowing this radical agenda to continue unchecked poses severe regional and international security risks. The fully prepared and proactively alert India must now galvanise global consensus to isolate and neutralise this persistent threat, safeguarding regional stability and global peace.

Maj Gen RPS Bhadauria (Retd) is the Additional Director General of the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS), New Delhi. He previously served as the Director of the Centre for Strategic Studies & Simulation (CS3) at the United Service Institution of India (USI) and has had a distinguished 36-year career in the Indian Army.