'Op Sindoor Not Halted Under Pressure': Rajnath Singh Dismisses Mediation Claim | Exclusive

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has categorically stated that Operation Sindoor—India’s high-intensity military operation to crush terror launchpads in Pakistan and PoK after the Pahalgam attack—“was not halted under anyone’s pressure or request”, dismissing speculation that foreign intervention led to the ceasefire.

In an exclusive interview with Rahul Joshi, Network18 Group Editor-in-Chief, Singh said: “Operation Sindoor was not halted under anyone’s pressure or at anyone’s request. I want to state this plainly in simple words. You know I take full precaution in political matters that I should never lie… I stand fully by what I am saying.”

Singh’s remarks come amid renewed claims by US President Donald Trump, who has said he played a “major role”

in getting India and Pakistan to end hostilities following Operation Sindoor. Trump had also suggested that India was now facing tariffs and visa restrictions as “a price for defiance”.

This week too, the US President stated that both India and Pakistan were “going to have a nuclear war”, but his intervention, in the form of a trade warning, convinced them to stand down. “I told both of them, ‘If you guys don’t work out a deal fast, you’re not gonna do any business with the United States.’ They were both great leaders, and they worked out a deal, and they stopped the war. That would’ve been a bad war. It would’ve been a nuclear war,” Trump said.

However, Singh firmly rejected the assertions, saying India’s decisions are made independently and in national interest. “He [Trump] is saying that and still they made a pact with us, right? This means all indications are positive,” the minister said, referring to the 10-year defence cooperation agreement signed earlier this year with US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth.

Singh’s comments underline India’s consistent stance that no external power played a role in the cessation of Operation Sindoor, which he described as being “halted, not ended”.

Asked about demands from a section that Pakistan must be taught a harsher lesson and Operation Sindoor should have continued for more time, Singh said India was not a warmonger. “I want to make one thing clear. There were calls coming from Pakistan’s DGMO. After those calls, this happened. We are not warmongers—some people are the kind who want war and confrontation, but India never wants that. If repeated demands are coming from their side that it should be stopped or restrained, then we considered it. We did what we had to do. We realised there was no reason to escalate this war further. If need arises, we will act again.”

Explaining the precautions India took while carrying out the strikes, the minister said: “Look at what precautions we took. Terrorists had secretly infiltrated our borders and killed our innocent citizens. We targeted only their terrorist centres. We did not target the ordinary citizens in Pakistan. Despite taking such steps, people accuse our government of discrimination on grounds of religious or caste. India is a country where our sages considered not just those living in our borders, but the entire world as one family. If the message of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam has gone to the world from any place, it is from your and mine Indian soil.”