RAWALPINDI: Pakistan’s military on Monday rejected an Indian documentary on the so-called Operation Sindoor, accusing New Delhi of using cinematic reconstruction, selective interviews and contradictory claims to recast the outcome of last year’s military confrontation.
In a detailed statement, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said the production sought to reshape the history of Marka-e-Haq and portray what Pakistan described as a failed Indian military venture as a successful operation.
The documentary features senior Indian political and military leaders alongside dramatised reconstructions, emotional narration and selectively edited interviews.
According to the statement, its account contains “fundamental contradictions” that undermine the narrative being presented and point to an effort to construct a domestically acceptable version of the conflict.
Pahalgam Timeline Comes Under Question
One of the central objections concerns the documentary’s attempt to establish a connection between an address by Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff on April 16, 2025, and the Pahalgam incident of April 22, 2025.
India subsequently claimed that the three alleged perpetrators of the Pahalgam incident were identified and killed on July 28, 2025, 82 days after Operation Sindoor.
The Pakistani statement questioned how the May 7 military action could be portrayed as punishment for those responsible for Pahalgam when, according to India’s own later account, the alleged perpetrators were killed more than two months afterwards.
“If the alleged perpetrators were eliminated on 28 July, India must explain who it claims to have punished on 7 May 2025,” it said.
‘100% Mission Success’ Claim Rejected
The statement also disputed India’s claim of “100 percent mission success”, saying it did not correspond with Pakistan’s account of the operational record.
During Marka-e-Haq, Pakistan’s Armed Forces successfully thwarted Indian aggression and shot down eight military aircraft, it said.
Pakistan subsequently launched Operation Bunyanum Marsoos, employing Fatah precision-guided rockets and missiles, Pakistan Air Force precision munitions, long-range loitering munitions and precision artillery against 26 military targets.
Those targets included facilities used to target Pakistani citizens as well as entities accused by Pakistan of involvement in fomenting terrorism against the country, according to the statement.
Documentary’s Own Admissions Question Victory Narrative
The documentary itself, the statement argued, contains acknowledgements that sit uneasily with its portrayal of decisive Indian military dominance.
Indian military leaders featured in the production acknowledge extensive Pakistani missile, drone and air activity, sustained engagements along the Line of Control and the activation of Indian air-defence systems.
Pakistan maintains that such admissions are difficult to reconcile with repeated claims that its forces were decisively defeated during the confrontation.
DGMO Contacts Cited in Cessation of Hostilities
The account of how hostilities ended was also challenged.
The documentary’s own narration confirms that fighting ceased following communication between the Directors General of Military Operations of Pakistan and India and an agreed cessation of military action.
The statement said this contradicted attempts to portray Operation Sindoor as a unilateral Indian military triumph.
It further maintained that the cessation of hostilities was facilitated by the United States and could not subsequently be presented as evidence of an unconditional Indian victory.
Contradictions Over Escalation
Questions were also raised over the documentary’s portrayal of escalation dynamics.
The production repeatedly emphasises surprise, precision, deep strikes and “escalation dominance”, while simultaneously claiming that India deliberately limited the conflict and provided Pakistan with an “exit window”.
According to Pakistan’s account, these competing claims expose the documentary as a carefully constructed domestic narrative rather than an objective military record.
“India has not declassified the truth. It has cobbled together a propaganda video to project a military blunder as a successful endeavour,” the statement said.
It added that cinematic reconstruction could not change the chronology of events, erase aircraft losses or military casualties, alter the engagements that took place or turn what Pakistan describes as a battlefield defeat into a self-proclaimed victory.
Pakistan Says Operational Record Speaks for Itself
Pakistan said it had no need to manufacture a narrative around Marka-e-Haq, maintaining that the operational record, battlefield evidence, diplomatic exchanges and India’s own subsequent statements spoke for themselves.
It added that these developments had been widely acknowledged by the international community.
Concluding the statement, Pakistan reiterated its commitment to regional peace and stability while stressing that its armed forces remained fully prepared to defend the country’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and national interests.
Any future military misadventure, it warned, would be met with a “firm, decisive and disproportionate response”, after which no amount of cinematic narrative-building would be able to provide face-saving.
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