Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday warned Pakistan over its recent military build-up near the Sir Creek region, saying any misadventure would result in “a strong and decisive response” that could “change both history and geography”.
Speaking at the Vijaya Dashami celebrations after performing Shastra Puja at the Bhuj military station in Gujarat, Rajnath accused Islamabad of deliberately stirring up the longstanding border dispute over the Sir Creek area, a strategic and sensitive zone along the Gujarat coastline.
“If Pakistan dares to act in the Sir Creek sector, the reply will be so strong that it will change both history and geography. In 1965, the Indian Army showed courage by reaching Lahore, and in 2025 Pakistan must remember that the road to Karachi also passes through the Creek,” he said.
Sources in the security establishment said Islamabad had been rapidly expanding its military footprint in the Sir Creek sector, deploying coastal defence boats,
marine assault craft and naval ships, besides strengthening air defence with radars, missiles and surveillance aircraft.
The Sir Creek region, a 96km marshy strip in the Rann of Kutch where the creek meets the Arabian Sea, has been the subject of a longstanding boundary dispute between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. The strip between Gujarat and Sindh is said to have oil and gas reserves.
Rajnath said: “Seventy-eight years after independence, a dispute over the border in the Sir Creek area is being stirred up. India has made several attempts to resolve the issue through dialogue, but there is a flaw in Pakistan’s intentions; its intentions are unclear. The way in which the Pakistan Army has recently expanded its military infrastructure in areas adjacent to Sir Creek reveals its intentions.”
Rajnath said the Indian Army and the BSF was jointly protecting the borders.
“If any misadventure is attempted from the Pakistani side in the Sir Creek area, it will receive a decisive response,” the defence minister said.
Sindoor praise
Rajnath lauded the armed forces for thwarting Pakistan’s attempts to breach India’s defence network during Operation Sindoor.
“Pakistan had tried to penetrate India’s defences from Leh to the Sir Creek sector, but the swift and effective counter-action by the Indian forces not only exposed the weaknesses of Pakistan’s air defence system but also sent out a clear message to the world that India can inflict heavy damage at a time, place and manner of its choosing,” he said.
The defence minister said that despite having the capability to infllict such damage, India had demonstrated restraint as Operation Sindoor was aimed at countering terrorism, not provoking a wider conflict.
Rajnath asserted that the operation had achieved all its military objectives and reaffirmed that India’s fight against terrorism would continue.
Addressing a group of soldiers, Rajnath flagged some of the challenges along the country’s borders.
“At times, these challenges appear in the form of external aggression, at times as terrorist organisations, and in today’s world, they also appear in the form of cyber warfare and information warfare,” he said.
The event was attended by the army chief, General Upendra Dwivedi; the southern army commander, Lieutenant General Dhiraj Seth; the corps commander of the 12 Corps, Jodhpur, Lieutenant General Aditya Vikram Singh Rathee; and the air officer commanding, Air Force Station Bhuj, Air Commodore K.P.S. Dham.