'Op Sindoor Forced Pakistan To Reset Its Constitution, Militiary Structure': CDS Anil Chauhan

Last Updated:January 10, 2026, 09:58 IST

General Chauhan described the changes as an acknowledgement that the operation had exposed serious shortcomings in Islamabad’s military system.

CDS Anil Chauhan (Image: PTI/File photo)

Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan on Friday said Operation Sindoor compelled Pakistan to push through constitutional amendments and overhaul its higher defence organisation.

General Chauhan described the changes as an acknowledgement that the operation had exposed serious shortcomings in Islamabad’s military system.

Addressing the Pune Public Policy Festival 2026 at the Gokhale Institute of Politics and Economics, Gen Chauhan said Pakistan’s post-operation restructuring of its command and control architecture revealed weaknesses that surfaced during the conflict.

He pointed to Islamabad’s decision to scrap the post of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee and replace it with a Chief of Defence Forces, alongside the creation of new entities such as the National Strategy Command and the Army Rocket Forces Command.

According to the CDS, these moves have led to an unusual concentration of land, joint and strategic military authority in a single individual.

“This runs counter to the core principle of jointness and reflects a land-centric approach to warfare," he said, cautioning that such centralisation could pose internal challenges for Pakistan’s military establishment.

Responding to questions on whether Operation Sindoor had prompted changes in India’s own command structure, Gen Chauhan clarified that while the CDS does not exercise direct command over the three service chiefs, the role carries significant operational responsibility.

As the permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, he said decisions are taken collectively to ensure integrated planning and execution.

He added that the CDS has direct oversight of emerging operational domains such as space, cyber, electromagnetic and cognitive warfare, as well as special forces operating under the Integrated Defence Staff framework.

Gen Chauhan said global military strategy is undergoing a fundamental transformation, with technology increasingly shaping the conduct of warfare rather than geography alone.

“From Panipat to Plassey, geography once dictated campaigns. Today, technology is the key driver," he said.

While future conflicts may rely more on non-contact and non-kinetic methods, he warned that conventional land warfare remains brutal and manpower-intensive, particularly along contested borders with Pakistan and China.

India, he said, must be prepared for both technology-driven conflicts and the possibility of attritional combat, even as it works to avoid the latter.

Drawing lessons from Operation Sindoor and earlier engagements such as the Uri surgical strikes, the Doklam and Galwan standoffs, and the Balakot air strikes, Gen Chauhan said these operations relied on innovative, situation-specific command arrangements.

“What we are moving towards now is a standardised system that can be applied across contingencies," he said, adding that most of the foundational work for establishing joint theatre commands has been completed.

He expressed confidence that the integrated command structure would be operational before the revised timeline.

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