Pakistan is sweating bullets as India’s counter-terror doctrine hardens under the Modi government’s iron-clad New Normal. Recently, NIA captured two key ISIS operatives – Abdullah Faiyaz Shaikh and Talha Khan – while sneaking back into the country. This isn’t just another anti-terror win. It’s a signal. A warning. And possibly a clue.
After India’s deadly 7th May 2025 strike on JeM and LeT hubs inside Pakistan, terror masters like Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar were cornered. In retaliation to Pakistan’s military aggression – India broke Pakistan’s spine – crippling airbases, frying radar systems and grounding enemy jets. Is the only path available to mourning Jihadis? Activate their sleeper cells in India. But Bharat, too, is watching. And this time, revenge will be a national policy.
India Strikes on Pakistan’s Jihadi Hubs – Terror Lords Panic
India’s unprecedented offensive on May 7 targeting terror hubs in Pakistan wasn’t just a warning – it was a declaration. It was the New Normal of Disproportionate Response. On the nights of the 8th and 9th – India pummelled the Pakistani airfields, neutralized AWACS, and ripped runways apart. Thus, Pakistan’s terror twins LeT and JeM found themselves neutered.
Masood Azhar and Hafiz Saeed—once roaring lions—are now caged and howling for revenge.
But launching cross-border attacks has become suicide. So what’s left? The shadow war from within. The NIA’s arrest of Shaikh and Khan – fugitives hiding in Jakarta since 2023 – exposes the fallback strategy. Unable to strike from across the border, these terror groups are now dusting off their in-country modules. ISIS, LeT, and JeM may wear different badges, but their mission is the same: bleed India through a thousand cuts using hidden daggers.
Sleeper Awakens: Pune Module and the Plan to Burn Bharat
The duo arrested were not petty criminals for hire. Instead, they were core members of an ISIS sleeper cell involved in fabricating IEDs in Pune. Along with eight others already in custody, they had rented a house in Kondhwa to run a bomb-making workshop. One of their devices was already tested in a controlled explosion.
The goal of this Pakistan-sponsored group was chilling: create chaos, provoke riots, and wage war on the Indian state.
Their return from Indonesia isn’t just a coincidence. It likely comes under direct orders from higher-ups sensing the time to strike is now. Why now? Pakistan’s official war machinery was decapitated, hence, the secondary line of war in the form of terrorism must strike. India’s firm stance is that any Pak-linked terror act will now be treated as an act of war. Thereby, forcing these groups to operate below the radar, through proxies and ghost networks.
Is Pakistan Pulling Out or Pushing In?
So here’s the real question: are these arrests proof that Pakistan is calling its dogs home, too terrified to provoke a larger war? Or is it unleashing them, hoping plausible deniability will shield it from India’s wrath?
Either way, India is prepared.
The NIA’s proactive bust, the surveillance net over returning operatives, and the strategic deterrence policy of disproportionate response show that Bharat isn’t playing catch-up anymore. It’s pre-emptive. Predictive. And prepared.
Prediction: A Dirty War with Pakistan on the Card
Expect more sleeper cells to activate. Expect more arrests. But also expect India to hit back harder. Under the Modi Doctrine, there will be no difference between the handler and the hitman. Whether a bomb goes off in Pune – a training camp will burn in Bahawalpur. The response will be national, military, and unapologetic.
Pakistan may hope the world sees these as “lone wolf” acts or “domestic radicalization.”
But Bharat sees the pattern and it has the political will to respond with overwhelming force.
From Jakarta to Kondhwa, from Pakistan’s bunkers to India’s borders, the war has changed. The terrain is different, but the enemy is the same. Bharat has made its red lines clear. And this time, it isn’t just defending itself – it’s hunting down the threat, wherever it hides.