Pakistan was informed about Operation Sindoor 30 minutes after India struck terrorist camps, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told a parliamentary panel on Monday, reported The New Indian Express.

The statement came days after the Congress claimed that the minister had confessed to the Indian government informing Pakistan at the beginning of the military operation that came against the backdrop of the April 22 Pahalgam attack. Party leader Rahul Gandhi had said it was a crime to inform Pakistan at the start of India’s attack, and asked whether the Indian Air Force lost any aircraft as a result.

On May 15, Jaishankar told reporters that India had sent a message to Pakistan that it was targeting terrorist infrastructure, and not the Pakistani military, at the state of Operation Sindoor.

Speaking before the parliamentary panel on Monday, the minister reportedly said that the foreign secretary was informed of the operation, which was followed by a statement from the Press Information Bureau.

Subsequently, India’s director general of military operations notified his Pakistani counterpart about the strikes, The New Indian Express quoted Jaishankar as saying.

He also said that the decision to stop cross-border firings between India and Pakistan was taken bilaterally after a request from Islamabad. He underlined that only the directors general of military operations of the countries spoke to each other, and no other Indian official spoke with the Pakistani side.

This came after Opposition leaders reportedly raised concerns about United States President Donald Trump repeatedly claiming that Washington had mediated peace between India and Pakistan, The Hindu reported.

Jaishankar said that although the US urged India to engage in talks with Pakistan, New Delhi made it clear that dialogue and terrorism cannot go hand in hand.

The minister also told the committee that any ceasefire violation or terrorist activity by Pakistan would prompt India to resume military action, The Indian Express reported.

Opposition leaders also questioned why India was unable to block the approval of a $1 billion loan to Pakistan by the International Monetary Fund on May 9, as part of its bailout programme.

Jaishankar replied that India’s objections had prompted the IMF to impose 11 new conditions on Pakistan for the release of the next tranche of the bailout, The Hindu reported.

On May 10, India and Pakistan reached an “understanding” to halt firing following a four-day conflict.

Tensions between New Delhi and Islamabad had escalated on May 7 when the Indian military carried out strikes – codenamed Operation Sindoor – on what it claimed were terrorist camps in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

The strikes were in response to the terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam, which killed 26 persons on April 22.

The Pakistan Army retaliated to Indian strikes by repeatedly shelling Indian villages along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir. At least 22 Indian civilians and eight defence personnel were killed.

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