India’s recent claims regarding the pseudo-successes of Operation Sindoor reek of political desperation. The Modi government and its air force taking three months to cook up a story about shooting down six Pakistani aircraft, including F-16 fighter jets in hangars, is just absurd. The claim proves once again how dependent the Indian government is on disinformation to sell its narrative to its own people as well as the world. Although no sane mind is willing to buy this plot, such fabrications do have the potential to keep South Asia on the brink, nowhere any lasting stability.

The Indian Air Force chief’s sudden discovery of a victory is just an attempt to cover up India’s military setbacks during the May conflict. His controversial ‘revelation’ that India’s Russian-made S-400 missiles took out five Pakistani fighter jets and a large surveillance aircraft has been rubbished not just by Pakistan but also by voices within India. Interestingly, this supposed “largest ever” surface-to-air kill was not mentioned once during the weeks of global attention in May. Moreover, the news was delivered without any evidence or independent confirmation.

In contrast, Pakistan had laid out its version within days of the clash and gave technical briefings to international media. There was nothing from New Delhi but silence back then, as it had nothing to counter the proven destruction to its air fleet and military installations. However, the IAF has apparently been tasked with pushing this poorly brewed narrative into the domestic bloodstream to deflect attention from Operation Sindoor-related questions to which the Modi government has no answers.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif gave a timely and appropriate response to the false Indian assertions, which he dubbed implausible and hilarious. He sounded almost sorry for the Indian military officials for being used as a face for what he called a “monumental failure” that stemmed from the Modi government’s strategic shortsightedness. Categorically denying the IAF chief’s claims, Asif did what any sane person would do, and that was to propose an independent verification of aircraft inventories of both forces to let the truth prevail.

However, the elephant in the room is not just the falsification of one battle. It would be foolish to ignore the fact that false claims serve as accelerants in a nuclearized neighborhood. They not only feed nationalist sentiments but also harden political positions, which could trigger a skirmish with a potential to erupt in a full-scale war. The region cannot afford it, nor can the rest of the world.

Modi government must come to its senses and realize that the longer such narratives dominate, the more his government risks believing its own propaganda

That being said, it is understandable that New Delhi does not want to tell the truth about May adventurism and rather wants to bury its failures under stories of imaginary wreckage of Pakistani jets. However, the Modi government must come to its senses and realize that the longer such narratives dominate, the more his government risks believing its own propaganda. To set the record straight, India must put the money where its mouth is and accept Pakistan’s offer for independent verification of both countries’ aircraft inventories. That would stop the next war before it even starts.