OPINION | Pakistan’s Proxy War Doctrine: From Kargil to Today’s Kashmir, A Legacy of Covert Conflict

By Major General RPS Bhadauria (Retd)

Since its inception, Pakistan has pursued a policy of asymmetric warfare to challenge India’s military superiority. One of the most enduring tools in this strategy has been the use of proxy war: a covert form of aggression that blurs the line between conventional war and terrorism.

Serving as a bridge between distinct eras of conflict, the application of Pakistan’s proxy war doctrine connects the icy heights of Kargil in 1999 with the turbulent streets of today’s Kashmir. Throughout, this doctrine has remained central to Pakistan’s India policy, evolving but not fading.

The Kargil Playbook: Early Lessons in Hybrid War

The 1999 Kargil War marked a turning point in India-Pakistan relations, not just for its tactical implications but also for what it revealed about Pakistan’s mindset.

The incursion was orchestrated by Pakistan’s military leadership under General Pervez Musharraf, who sought to exploit the gaps along the Line of Control (LoC) by infiltrating soldiers disguised as militants into Indian territory.

The goal was to internationalise the Kashmir issue and cut off Indian access to the Siachen Glacier.

Though bold, the Kargil operation failed both militarily and diplomatically. However, it exposed Pakistan’s readiness to employ hybrid warfare—a mix of conventional troops, irregulars, and jihadi fighters—beneath its nuclear shield.

The lesson: Pakistan preferred deniability and proxy engagement over open warfare.

Post-Kargil Consolidation: Militancy as Statecraft

Following the Kargil conflict, Pakistan refined its proxy war doctrine. The early 2000s saw spikes in infiltration, arms smuggling, and militant training.

Groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed, with safe havens in Pakistan and often supported by the ISI, became key tools to keep Kashmir unsettled.

The 2001 Parliament and 2008 Mumbai attacks exemplified this strategy. While India used restraint, Pakistan relied on deniability to deflect scrutiny.

These incidents, though not wars, inflicted psychological wounds and challenged India’s security.

The Modern Manifestation: Disinformation and Digital Jihad

Today, Pakistan’s proxy war has entered the digital and psychological domain. Alongside arming and training terrorists, the ISI now oversees sophisticated information warfare campaigns targeting Indian institutions, democracy, and social cohesion.

Social media platforms serve as battlegrounds for coordinated influence operations. Networks of fake accounts, bots, and troll farms amplify fake news, deepfakes, and radical narratives designed to incite unrest and confusion, particularly in the Kashmir Valley. Disinformation campaigns target both domestic and international audiences to shape perceptions and delegitimise Indian actions.

Radicalisation, once localised, now spreads through encrypted apps and indoctrination videos. By blending militancy with cyber operations, Pakistan’s proxy war is more elusive.

The abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019 highlighted this shift. As infiltration declined due to surveillance and fencing, Pakistan intensified psychological warfare, spreading misinformation and trying to provoke unrest.

India’s Counter-Strategy: From Reactive to Proactive

India’s response has shifted. Now proactive, Indian doctrine includes preemptive strikes, such as the 2016 surgical and 2019 Balakot air strikes, demonstrating that cross-border terrorism will invite retaliation.

Internally, intelligence coordination has undergone significant improvement. Agencies like the National Investigation Agency (NIA) have disrupted terror funding networks, while the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) has been used to clamp down on separatist groups.

Jammu and Kashmir’s integration into the Indian mainstream has also gained momentum, denying Pakistan the political leverage it once exploited.

Global Spotlight and Diplomatic Isolation

Pakistan’s proxy war has not gone unnoticed. International watchdogs and global powers have increasingly called out Islamabad for harboring terror outfits.

The FATF repeatedly placed Pakistan on its grey list for inadequate action against terror financing. India’s diplomacy exposing Pakistan’s duplicity has been effective internationally.

Even Pakistan’s traditional allies, including Gulf countries, show waning tolerance for terror-backed politics. The world now sees Pakistan’s proxy war as a destabilising tactic masked as liberation rhetoric.

The Doctrine Persists, but So Does Resistance

Despite setbacks, Pakistan’s proxy war doctrine remains: flexible, adaptive, persistent. Yet India’s ability to neutralise and retaliate has shifted the balance.

The enduring threat of proxy war may not vanish overnight, but its effectiveness is being steadily eroded by Indian resolve and global consensus.

Though the script from Kargil to today’s Kashmir has evolved, vigilance remains essential, as Pakistan’s proxy war tests India’s strategic patience, unity, and resilience.

Maj Gen. RPS Bhadauria (Retd) is the Additional Director General of the Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS), New Delhi, and was formerly the Director of the Centre for Strategic Studies & Simulation (CS3) at USI of India, having served in the Indian Army for 36 years.