While the Indian government chose to play its cards close to its chest when it comes to the losses suffered during the recent conflict with Pakistan, the India Chief of Defense Staff Anil Chauhan has told Bloomberg TV that India lost an unspecified number of fighter jets in the clashes with Pakistan last month. He however denied Pakistan's claim that they shot down six Indian warplanes.
Anil Chauhan further clarified that the conflict never came close to nuclear war, and "that channels of communication with Pakistan were always open to control the situation."
India had launched Operation Sindoor -precision strikes on terror bases in Pakistan and Pakistan -occupied Kashmir (PoK), after 26 tourists were shot dead at Pahalgam on April 22.
Speaking to Bloomberg TV on Saturday while atending the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Anil Chauhan called Pakistan's claims that it shot down six Indian warplanes as "absolutely incorrect," though he declined to specify how many jets India lost.
"Why they were down, what mistakes were made - that are important," Chauhan said when asked about the fighter jets. "Numbers are not important," he added.
The Bloomberg report recalled that earlier this month, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had said that his country shot down six Indian fighter jets, "an assertion", the report noted, "that hasn't been independently verified."
"The good part is that we are able to understand the tactical mistake which we made, remedy it, rectify it, and then implement it again after two days and flew our jets again, targeting at long range," Chauhan said.
Meanwhile, on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had warned Pakistan of severe retribution if it again dared to mastermind a terror act in India.
Addressing a rally at Bikramganj in Bihar’s Rohtas district, Modi said Pakistan and world had seen India’s power in Operation Sindoor. “It was just one arrow from country’s quiver…our fight against terrorism was neither over nor has it come to a halt,” he asserted.