PM Modi meets NSA Ajit Doval, Home Secretary as India weighs next move after Pahalgam

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held a high-level security review with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Home Secretary Govind Mohan at his office, as India continues to assess its options in response to the April 22 terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam. 

The meeting comes amid escalating tensions between India and Pakistan and follows a series of consultations PM Modi has held with the country's top defence and security officials. On Monday, Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh briefed the Prime Minister on the evolving situation. A day earlier, Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshal A P Singh also met Modi and is understood to have discussed the post-attack security scenario.

This string of top-level meetings began on Saturday, when Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi updated the Prime Minister on developments in the Arabian Sea's critical maritime zones.

In a high-level review last Tuesday, Prime Minister Modi had already granted the armed forces "complete operational freedom" to determine the mode, timing, and targets of India's response. He had also underscored the country’s determination to deliver a "crushing blow to terrorism".

The April 22 Pahalgam terror strike, in which 26 civilians lost their lives, has triggered a series of retaliatory measures from India. A day after the attack, New Delhi suspended the Indus Waters Treaty, closed the Attari land border crossing, and downgraded diplomatic relations with Pakistan.

In further steps, India imposed an immediate ban on all imports from Pakistan, suspended postal services, and prohibited Pakistani-flagged ships from docking at Indian ports, citing national security and public policy grounds.