India’s patience is strength, not weakness: Rajnath Singh

New Delhi, Sep 17: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said India’s military operations, including Operation Sindoor, the 2016 surgical strikes and the 2019 Balakot air strike, underline that India’s patience should never be mistaken for weakness.

Addressing the Hyderabad Liberation Day event, he stressed that while New India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi prefers dialogue, it knows how to give a “befitting reply” when provoked.

Referring to the Pahalgam terror attack, Rajnath Singh said terrorists acted “based on their dharma,” while India’s Armed Forces responded “based on their karma” by striking terrorist hideouts in Pakistan and PoK during Operation Sindoor. He noted the operation was “only on hold” and would resume if fresh attacks are launched from across the border. Singh also asserted that India rejected third-party intervention during the ceasefire, saying no outsider can interfere in the country’s internal matters.

The Defence Minister drew a parallel between Operation Polo in 1948 and Operation Sindoor, crediting Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s resolve for uniting Hyderabad with India and calling it a “glorious chapter” in the nation’s history. “Just as the Razakars’ conspiracy collapsed, Pakistan-sponsored terrorism has failed today,” he said.

Rajnath Singh hailed Prime Minister Modi’s leadership, crediting him with strengthening India culturally, socially and economically, and expressed confidence that India would soon become the world’s third-largest economy. “Today, India does not take dictation from anyone; it writes its own script,” he added. The event also featured a photo exhibition on Hyderabad Liberation Day, attended by Union Ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, G. Kishan Reddy and Bandi Sanjay Kumar.