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| Terrorism Cannot Demand the Privileges of Peace | | Pakistan Must Choose Responsibility Over Proxy War |
By Farooq Ganderbali
The latest controversy over the Indus Waters Treaty is not merely a dispute about rivers, dams or arbitration. At its heart lies a much larger question: Can a state continue to demand the benefits of international agreements while supporting, sheltering or providing space to forces accused of attacking its neighbour?
India placed the Indus Waters Treaty in abeyance after the horrific Pahalgam terrorist attack of April 22, 2025, in which 26 innocent civilians were killed. India has maintained that the attack was linked to Pakistan-based terrorism. The tragedy transformed the debate over India-Pakistan relations from one of diplomacy and water-sharing into a fundamental question of national security and accountability.
India's position is therefore understandable: terrorism and normal bilateral cooperation cannot continue indefinitely under the pretence of business as usual. A country cannot demand peace at the negotiating table while terrorism allegedly linked to its territory continues to threaten innocent people across the border.
The Hague-based Court of Arbitration has ruled that the Indus Waters Treaty remains binding and that India cannot unilaterally suspend its obligations. India, however, has rejected the ruling and questioned the tribunal's jurisdiction, maintaining that the arbitration mechanism was constituted contrary to the treaty and that its decision does not affect India's sovereign position.
Pakistan may present the ruling as a diplomatic success, but it should not mistake a legal dispute over a treaty for an escape from the larger issue of terrorism.
The real issue is responsibility.
For decades, India has faced terrorism and violence originating from networks operating from or linked to Pakistan. The Pahalgam attack once again demonstrated the devastating human cost of this conflict. Twenty-six innocent civilians lost their lives while visiting one of Kashmir's most beautiful destinations.
The international community must therefore look beyond diplomatic statements and ask Pakistan a straightforward question: What concrete steps is it taking to dismantle terrorist infrastructure, prevent terrorist financing and recruitment, eliminate safe havens and ensure that its territory is never used to attack another country?
Pakistan cannot expect international sympathy merely by invoking treaties and international institutions. International law cannot become a shield behind which terrorism is ignored. Cooperation between nations depends on trust, and trust cannot survive when violence is repeatedly used as an instrument of policy.
Kashmir, too, must not become a permanent excuse for terrorism. No political grievance can justify the murder of civilians. No ideology can legitimise the killing of tourists. No territorial claim can make terrorism acceptable.
Pakistan must understand that Kashmir cannot be won through guns, radicalisation, infiltration or proxy warfare. The people of Jammu & Kashmir need peace, opportunity, investment, tourism, education and development—not violence imported across the border.
At the same time, India must act with strategic maturity. Standing firm against terrorism does not require India to abandon prudence, international credibility or its long-term water-security interests. India must protect its sovereign interests while continuing to engage legitimate international institutions where applicable and ensuring that every action strengthens—not weakens—India's position as a responsible global power.
The Indus river system is vital to millions of people. Water must ultimately be managed through sustainable, technically sound and internationally credible arrangements. But cooperation cannot be separated completely from security realities.
Pakistan therefore faces a clear choice.
It can continue with the old model of terrorism, radicalisation, proxy warfare and diplomatic denial, or it can demonstrate genuine responsibility by dismantling terrorist networks, stopping terror financing, preventing recruitment and refusing safe haven to those who target civilians.
India has repeatedly demonstrated that it wants peace—but peace cannot be one-sided.
A nation that seeks the privileges of cooperation must also accept the responsibilities that come with it. A neighbour that wants dialogue must create an environment in which dialogue can succeed.
The message to Islamabad should be unmistakable:
Stop terrorism. Stop proxy war. Stop radicalisation. Stop financing terror. Dismantle safe havens. Respect India's sovereignty.
Only then can there be a meaningful conversation about rebuilding trust.
The world should not allow the language of treaties to overshadow the human cost of terrorism. The blood of innocent victims cannot be washed away by diplomatic statements, and no river can become a substitute for accountability.
Pakistan must choose between the past and the future—between proxy war and peace, between terrorism and responsibility.
India will not accept a future in which terrorism is sponsored on one side and cooperation is demanded on the other. The road to peace begins with an end to terrorism.
(The author is a Kashmir based senior journalist & columnist and President of Voice for Peace and justice.
Farooq Ganderbali
+91-9419000498 )
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