10 Years Since Modi’s Lahore Visit: From Hopes of Peace to Operation Sindoor, India-Pakistan Relations Take a Turbulent Turn

ISLAMABAD: Exactly a decade ago, on 25 December 2015, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi made a surprise visit to Lahore, catching the world off guard. That day, he had breakfast in Kabul, lunch in Lahore, and dinner back in Delhi—a whirlwind journey that would temporarily shift the India-Pakistan narrative.

A Historic Yet Brief Encounter
At the time, Pakistan’s Prime Minister was Nawaz Sharif, elder brother of the current PM Shahbaz Sharif. Modi accepted Sharif’s invitation to a private ceremony at his residence, sending shockwaves through diplomatic circles. The warmth, familial meeting, and symbolic gestures between the two leaders created hope that decades of hostility between the two nations might finally see an end.

However, those hopes were short-lived. Within months, terrorist attacks from Pakistan-based groups began to shatter the optimism. The 2016 Pathankot attack was followed by the Uri attack, prompting India to conduct surgical strikes and send a clear message: tolerance for terrorism had ended. In 2019, the Pulwama attack led to India’s airstrikes in Balakot, bringing the two nuclear-armed neighbors dangerously close to war.

From Dialogue to Distrust
The 2015 Lahore visit, once seen as a historic opportunity for dialogue, ultimately failed to transform India-Pakistan relations. After Pathankot and Uri, India’s firm stance made it clear that engagement and terrorism cannot coexist. The warmth of Lahore gradually gave way to mistrust and retaliatory politics.

In August 2019, India revoked Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, prompting Pakistan, under Prime Minister Imran Khan, to escalate the issue internationally. Diplomatic and trade relations were minimized, and ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) became routine. Although a temporary ceasefire was agreed upon in 2021 under Pakistan’s then-Army Chief Qamar Javed Bajwa, tensions persisted.

Operation Sindoor and a Decade of Conflict
On 22 April 2025, a terrorist attack in Pahalgam, carried out by Pakistani militants targeting tourists based on religious identity, shook India profoundly. In response, India launched Operation Sindoor on the nights of 7–8 May, striking nine terrorist bases in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Pakistan itself. Over four days of conflict, India targeted 11 Pakistani airbases with BrahMos missiles, destroying multiple aircraft including AWACS planes, resulting in the deaths of over 125 Pakistani soldiers, as later acknowledged by the Shahbaz Sharif government.

What began as a brief but hopeful dialogue in Lahore in 2015 ultimately escalated into near-war conditions by 2025. Operation Sindoor underscores a harsh reality: India and Pakistan remain perpetually on the brink of conflict. Pakistan’s continued support for terrorist groups guarantees that any attack on Indian soil could trigger a swift Indian military response. Today, the memory of Modi’s Lahore visit may hold little significance for the people of either nation, overshadowed by a decade of hostility and military confrontation.