Pahalgam and the art of war: delay, drain, dislocate, dominate and destroy

Two millennia ago, Chanakya—India’s pre-eminent strategist—advised patience over haste, attrition over aggression, timing over fury. When the Pahalgam terror strike in April 2025 threatened innocent pilgrims, India’s response was swift and strategic. Beneath that visible action lay a far more profound strategic 5-D rhythm: Delay, Drain, Dislocate, Dominate, and Destroy. This is Bharat’s ancient warcraft reborn—bleeding foes dry without crossing into full-scale combat, and once the axe is applied then defeat is imperative.

Delay: Let the enemy bleed first

In the immediate aftermath of Pahalgam, New Delhi avoided impulsive surgical strikes/ raids, air strikes or uncoordinated skirmishes. Instead, it signalled unshakable resolve: enhanced troop deployments along the Line of Control, air and drone patrolling, and a permanent state of elevated alert for Islamabad. Pakistan’s Army, already stretched thin by decades of internal security commitments on the Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and internal front, now must sustain constant high readiness—fighter jets on the scramble, war-worn trucks on endless patrols, and command posts abuzz at all hours not only all along the Indo- Pak IB / LoC but also at sea, air and cyberspace.

Every hour of such alert burns fuel, ammunition, and morale. Pakistan’s keeping forces mobilized along the LoC costs the country hundreds of crores of rupees daily. For a country that recently sought a mere $180 million IMF lifeline—barely matching a fraction of those border-readiness bills—this sustained posture is indeed draining. Meanwhile, India fortifies its positions with a high level of planning, preparation and operational readiness that costs far less to maintain, yet projects invincible strength.

This is a Strategic Delay in action: forcing the adversary to exhaust himself while India quietly sharpens its advantage.

Drain: strategically leverage, natural and economic resources

As Pakistan’s military machine grinds in waiting extended and overstretched anxious and fearful, India quietly tightens leverage over Pakistan’s life-support systems. The holding ‘in abeyance’ of the Indus Waters Treaty by India post-Pahalgam attack marks India’s hydro strike against terrorism which can be deadlier than war and lifetime hurting. The decision is not a knee-jerk reaction; it is a carefully calibrated and executed decision aimed at reshaping India’s response to cross-border terrorism. Having been caught off guard and now on the back foot, Pakistan reacted in panic with hollow threats.

For a nation that savours tea as cultural lifeblood, water shortages translate into real hardship—agriculture wilting, factories idling, households rationing. Food prices rise; public discontent bubbles. Islamabad’s leadership, forced to divert attention from external threats, must scramble to secure alternate supplies. That diverts precious foreign exchange reserves and political capital from any sustained military posture.

Simultaneously, India’s economy hums. In the week after Pahalgam, foreign exchange coffers swelled by $8.4 billion, edging closer to a $700 billion cushion. Manufacturing orders pour in as global giants shift supply chains from China to Bharat’s shores. Drain has become a two-edged blade: bleeding Pakistan’s resilience while fuelling India’s ascent.

Dominate: Convert pressure into perception

With opponents fatigued and finances strained, India moves from attrition to ascendancy. The posturing of the Indian Army, Airforce and Navy sent panic into Pakistan with rants of nuclear sabre rattling. This too was rubbished.

Beyond borders, India’s defence exports flourish. The BrahMos cruise missile—battle-tested at high altitude—has become a symbol of reliability for Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern partners. Every successful demonstration is a live advertisement: “If it thrives in Pahalgam’s terrain, it will defend your shores.” Inquiries from Vietnam, the Philippines, and Gulf nations underscore a reality: India is not just defending; India is dominating the global arms market.

Economically, trade nears the $1 trillion milestone. Major investors from Apple to Tesla publicly praise India’s business climate, while China contends with $500 billion in export losses. India’s strategic narrative is clear: Dominate across military, economic, and diplomatic spheres.

Dislocate: Wage war on time, mind, and morale

Beyond the physical and economic arenas, India is executing a strategy of Dislocation—seeking to fracture Pakistan’s sense of security in space and time, erode the moral cohesion of its leadership, and corrode the psychological will of its people. The perpetual uncertainty along the LoC disorients Pakistani commanders: they cannot predict when or where India’s “next move” might come. Internally, public anguish over water shortages, electricity cuts, and food inflation sows distrust toward their government. Externally, international condemnation and diplomatic censure isolate Islamabad, undermining its moral legitimacy. Across cyberspace, targeted messaging highlights Pakistan’s failures, amplifying fear and fostering a zeitgeist of inevitable decline. In effect, India attacks not just tanks and pipelines, but timelines, trust, and tenacity—dislocating Pakistan’s mind and body until the very idea of resistance loses coherence. India is dislocating Pakistan- Physically, Psychologically, Temporally (Time Domain) and Morally.

Destroy: Irreversibly without excessive bloodshed

Once Delay has sapped enemy will, Drain has crippled capacity, and Dislocation has set them imbalanced, Dominate has cemented supremacy, India executes the final act: Destroy. This isn’t about mass mobilization or all-out war. It’s about surgically dismantling the last remnants of hostile capability. It is about a kinetic option with a clear politico-military aim, a sound military strategy with a defined end state, allocation and application of military might, and contingency planning across the entire rung of the escalatory ladder with levers under control. This does not mean undermining the adversary but overcoming him with a superior proactive and pre-emptive strategy.

Diplomatically, Pakistan finds itself increasingly isolated. India spearheads coordinated sanctions against terror-sponsoring proxies, secures UN resolutions to blacklist extremist networks, and rallies global opinion around de-radicalization rather than retaliation. Financially, legal instruments freeze the assets of militant funders. Cyber operations silently dismantle their communication nodes and choke off remittance channels.

Should any sleeper cell or rogue militia materialize, precision strikes—grounded in internationally accepted self-defence norms—will neutralize hardened infrastructure. By the time the “Destroy” phase unfolds, adversaries are already too fractured and disadvantaged. The strategic calculus shifts: any act of aggression invites calibrated enforcement that their battered economies and militaries cannot withstand. Hit Hard- Hit Where it Hurts and Hurt Where it Lasts. Fist No Fingers.

Destroy thus guarantees that threats are not merely subdued, but irreversibly broken—preserving regional stability while ensuring minimum cost and in least time.

The Pahalgam pivot: Crisis as catalyst

History seldom offers neat turning points. Yet the Pahalgam attack provided one. Instead of succumbing to emotional retribution, India turned that tragedy into a catalyst for long-term advantage. This is Chanakya’s timeless brilliance—seeing the battlefield as time as much as territory, will as much as weapons.

In Pahalgam’s fallout, India integrated all levers of national power: military, economic, diplomatic and psychological.

Each pillar reinforces the other in a perfect symphony. As Pakistan frets over depleted coffers, public anger rises over water and food shortages. A fractured adversary stands little chance when cobwebs of constraint entangle its options.

Conclusion: Bharat’s Strategic Resurrection

In the weeks since Pahalgam, Pakistan’s Army is more anxious than ever—its columns stretched, its stores shrinking, its commanders fearful of further unseen blows. China, having lost face at the LAC, watches from the sidelines while grappling with youth unemployment and fading exports. And India, guided by the embrace of Chanakya Niti, surges ahead—unyielding in posture, unhurried in purpose.

This is not sabre-rattling. It is strategic patience. It is civilisational warfare writ small and smart:

1. Delay the enemy’s advantage.
2. Drain his resources and will.
3. Dominate every domain—military, economic, diplomatic.
4. Dislocate him physically, psychologically, temporally and morally.
5. Destroy by the stroke of a hammer at a time and place of choosing to make the hurt lifetime.

This is an acme of skill and strategic poise. Just the art of war refined over centuries—waiting while adversaries burn through their venom, then applying precise pressure to seal outcomes. This is Bharat’s moment of strategic mastery: a nation reviving its ancient soul, rising on wisdom as much as strength.

Back Bharat. Trust Chanakya. Let the enemies destroy themselves—while India quietly ascends. Be Responsible Citizens and Don’t Fall Prey to Fake Pakistani Propaganda.