ISLAMABAD: An international affairs scholar Ahmed Hassan Al-Arabi, who co-authored new book, “The War that Changed Everything” with former caretaker information minister Murtaza Solangi, has warned that the ideology, propagated by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and supported by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), poses a threat not just to Pakistan but to global peace, targeting religious minorities and promoting expansionist narratives such as “Akhand Bharat”.
Speaking at launching of the book, Al-Arabi also drew historical parallels, pointing out that Pakistan’s founding father, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, had foreseen the dangers of such fascist forces, and argued that Pakistan remains a frontline defence against their rise.
He said the tragedy of Pahalgam was not just an attack on civilians, it was an attack on truth itself. Al-Arabi called on journalists, researchers, and global policymakers to confront the reality that Hindutva was not merely an internal Indian issue, but a transnational threat.
The book contains startling revelations about the recent Pakistan-India tensions and provides a historical perspective on Indian state terrorism. Speaking on the occasion, Murtaza Solangi described the publication not as a personal or professional achievement, but as a documentation of courage, sacrifice, and national resilience.
The book traces the events beginning with the Pahalgam massacre on April 22, 2025, where 26 tourists were killed in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), a tragedy quickly weaponised in political narratives. Solangi said the incident was exploited to justify a broader agenda: framing Pakistan as the aggressor, demonising Kashmiri dissent, and suspending the Indus Waters Treaty.
The book presents detailed evidence, from digital forensics to leaked files, exposing inconsistencies in the official Indian account, suggesting the crisis was manufactured to rally domestic support and deflect attention from internal challenges.
Solangi emphasised that it was not a counter-narrative rather it was the narrative. “The book is not a rebuttal to the Indian propaganda but an excavation of the truth,” he said. The book provides details regarding the timeline, geopolitical consequences, and Pakistan’s strategic restraint, including the precision of Operation Bunyan Marsoos.
Ahmed Hassan Al-Arabi, emphasised that beyond military operations and geopolitical manoeuvring, the book investigates the extremist ideology behind the crisis — Hindutva — which, he described as a militant, supremacist worldview driving India’s current political climate.
He described the book as a vital historical account of a conflict that reshaped not only Pakistan’s strategic posture but also regional and global dynamics. “We are not just talking about two countries rather we are talking about the lives of 2 billion people in South Asia,” he said.
Muhammad Idrees Khan, a former journalist, PSP officer, and recipient of the Medal for Fighting Militancy, talked about the book’s relevance for regions like north Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) that have long been at the frontlines of conflict.
He commended the authors and organisers for their contribution in exposing what he called the “hegemonic spirit of war-mongering” driven by Indian propaganda. Former federal minister Khurram Dastgir Khan lauded the book as a timely and authoritative first draft of history and emphasised the importance of documenting events so soon after the conflict, saying the authors have set a new benchmark by consolidating the narrative just three months after the war.