Pahalgam Incident Retaliation By Local Resistance Forces Against Modi's Kashmir Policy: Chinese Scholar

BEIJING, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd May, 2025) Many experts unanimously believe that the shooting incident targeting tourists in Pahalgam is likely a violent retaliation by local resistance forces in Indian occupied Kashmir against the Narendra Modi administration's Kashmir policies.

Accusing Pakistan without any basis from the very beginning is clearly an attempt by the Narendra Modi administration to evade responsibility for governance failure, Senior Research Fellow at Charhar Institute, Pro Cheng Xizhong said on Saturday.

In a statement issued here, he said that in recent days, India has used the shooting incident to create high tension in its relations with Pakistan, mainly for the following purposes.

Firstly, Narendra Modi wants to shift the domestic crisis. India is now facing many problems domestically, such as economic downturn, high unemployment rate and outdated infrastructure. By creating external conflicts, it can incite nationalist sentiment, shift people's attention from domestic conflicts to external threats, thereby consolidating public opinion and the political foundation of his government. At the same time, the Indian government can also use this opportunity to showcase a tough image and enhance its domestic support.

Secondly, Narendra Modi wants to curb cooperation between China and Pakistan. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is the flagship project of the "the Belt and Road". India sees it as a threat to its regional hegemony and is concerned that China's influence may radiate to South Asia through Pakistan, thereby affecting its dominant position in the region.

Intensifying the conflict between India and Pakistan can weaken Pakistan's national strength and interfere with China's strategic layout, he said.

Thirdly, India has significantly expanded its military power in recent years, purchasing a large amount of cutting-edge equipment that needs to be tested for equipment performance and military combat effectiveness through actual combat.

In addition, India is attempting to reshape the power structure in South Asia by taking military action against Pakistan, controlling the water sources in Kashmir, and squeezing Pakistan's strategic survival space.

However, Pakistan has a nuclear deterrent force, which poses great risks to India's military adventures, he concluded.

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