Congress veteran and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan has ignited a fresh political storm with a series of controversial remarks on Operation Sindoor, India’s military response to the deadly Pahalgam terror attack.
Addressing a press conference in Pune, Chavan claimed that India suffered a decisive setback on the very first day of the operation. According to him, a brief aerial engagement on December 7 allegedly ended in India’s defeat, forcing the Indian Air Force to remain grounded due to the risk of Pakistani retaliation.
“On the first day, we were completely defeated. In the half-hour aerial engagement that took place, Indian aircraft were shot down. Whether people accept it or not, that is what happened,” Chavan alleged. He went on to claim that no aircraft took off from key airbases such as Gwalior, Bathinda, or Sirsa, asserting that the probability of Indian jets being shot down was too high, effectively grounding the Air Force.
His remarks immediately triggered sharp political reactions. The BJP accused Chavan of echoing the narrative pushed by Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on the four-day military operation targeting terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK). Party leaders alleged that such statements undermine the armed forces and lend credence to hostile propaganda.
Chavan, however, did not stop at questioning the conduct of the operation. He went further to cast doubts on the relevance of India’s large standing army, using Operation Sindoor as a reference point. He argued that the conflict involved no ground movement whatsoever and was limited to air and missile strikes.
“During the entire operation, there was not even a one-kilometre movement of the military,” he said. “Whatever unfolded over two or three days was purely aerial warfare and missile warfare. Future wars will be fought the same way. In that context, do we really need to maintain an army of 12 lakh soldiers, or can they be deployed elsewhere?”
The former chief minister insisted that aerial dominance would define future conflicts, implicitly suggesting a rethink of India’s military structure and force deployment.
Operation Sindoor was launched in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 civilians were killed. While Chavan referred to reports of Indian fighter jets being shot down, the Indian government has categorically denied such claims. The controversy stems from remarks made by a defence attaché, which authorities later clarified were taken out of context.
Official military briefings have maintained that the operation was a success, stating that over 100 terrorists were neutralised using advanced platforms such as Rafale fighter jets, SCALP cruise missiles, and HAMMER precision-guided munitions.
Despite official rebuttals, Chavan’s comments have added fuel to an already charged political debate, reopening questions not just about Operation Sindoor, but also about how opposition leaders publicly frame India’s military actions.
