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Divyansh Kala

Recently, during and post- Operation Sindoor, the use of the word fifth column got attention in the strategic terminology of Bharat . The Operation Sindoor also signifies the fact that the format of war is evolving . The basic difference of Operation Sindoor with the past retaliatory actions is that it blends kinetic weapons with cyber disruptions, drone surveillance and psychological-information warfare . However, with the arrest of Bhartiya Citizens such as Jyoti Malhotra and Noman Ilahi a  network of Pakistani agents working against the Bhartiya interests from within have exposed a network which in strategic terms is referred to as Fifth column . According to the Britannica dictionary Fifth Column refers to a “clandestine group or faction of subversive agents who attempt to undermine a nation’s solidarity by any means at their disposal.” The term fifth column is said to be coined during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) by the nationalist General Emilio Mola Vidal, as four of his columns moved to Madrid and Vidal referred to his militant supporters within the capital as ‘Fifth Column’. A cardinal technique of the fifth column is the infiltration of sympathisers into the entire fabric of the nation under attack and, particularly, into positions of influence. From such places, fifth-column activists exploit the fears of a people by spreading rumours and misinformation, as well as by employing the more standard techniques of espionage and sabotage.

In the changing landscape of technology and enhanced multipolarity of the world, the format of Warfare have also evolved . Now the war is not only fought in the physical battleground rather the fight is their to alter the observational context of the people of a country through means of propaganda, misinformation and disinformation campaigns . The blend of these tools of war along with social engineering provides us a unique and a new generation of war referred to as the Fifth Generation warfare (5GW) . The fifth column implements the tactics of the Fifth Generation Warfare from inside the country with the goal to erode the trust of civil society from the government and the state institutions .

The Fifth Column intends to create narratives against the state and its institutions. Today, narratives determine politics and statecraft, and narratives are determined by agendas . We live in an era where information has been weaponised to create havoc in the society, with virulent forces using covert and overt propaganda outlets to further the faultlines of society or even create them where they are not prevalent, ultimately creating conflict and violence . 

Pakistan Government and its Intelligence Agency – Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) – has been strategically conspiring to groom its assets in form of activists, bloggers, academicians, NGOs etc, inside Bharat as well as around the world to undermine the success story of Bharat .  

The case of Jyoti Malhotra presents a new form of challenge in front of the Bhartiya  intelligence agencies as well as counter intelligence strategy of Bharat  for espionage .  

Malhotra visited the pakistan high commission in New Delhi on March 28, 2024 for a Iftaar Party . Prior to this she has applied for the Pakistan visa, but was denied . During the interview she was spotted to be frequently interacting with a person named Danish (official name Ehsan-Ur-Rahim) . Danish has been alleged for spying by Bharat’s Ministry of External Affairs and was ordered for demarche . Interestingly, within two weeks of the Iftaar Party Jyoti uploaded a video on April 16, 2024 and was in Amritsar and was just about to cross the border into Pakistan, as a she got a Visa for ten days. According to police Jyoti was being groomed as an Pakistani asset and Danish has helped Jyoti to secure the Pakistani Visa . Jyoti uploaded a video just after the Pahalgam attack and blamed the Bhartiya security agencies for the lapse in vigilance . This seems to be the part of a disinformation campaign which aims to erode state credibility .

In recent years,  with the increasing digital footprints of Bharat, the foreign powers especially the ISI are attempting to strategically exploit thi emerging soft power of Bharat by targeting the tech friendly professionals with something as simple as a facebook friend request . The recent case of a senior DRDO official Pradeep Kurulkar exemplifies this fact . Kurulkar has been sent a friend request by a profile named Zara Dasgupta . This friendship has slowly evolved into a romantic relationship and Kurulkar shared some of the secrets of DRDO with her ! Thus, with the evolution in technology one can see a evolution in the espionage techniques . With the emergence of Social Media has lowered the operational and strategic barriers of espionage as now no direct contact is needed .

Similarly, Pakistan has been employing its assets in the foreign lands to create fake narratives against Bharat . This includes nourishing the NGOs, activists and also hiring lobbying firms to create narratives against Bharat . Take the example of United States Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)’s ranking of Bharat as “Country of Particular Concern” . In April 29, 2020 Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, Ghazala Habib Khan and Jagtar Singh Johal, all of them have been splitting venom against Bharat at various public platforms, met USCIRF member Harrison Akins and presented a report on suppression of “Human Rights” in Kashmir . It has been alleged that various fronts of the radical Islamic organisation, Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA), have been paying money to to a lobbying firm Fidelis Government Relations of Terry Allen, who had been a long time associate of Nadeem Maenza, then USCIRF Commissioner . Maenza alongwith Harrison Akins and Anurima Bhargav has been frequently appearing in the events organised by radical Islamist Groups like Jamaat-e-Islami ! In 2020, Bharat has been entitled as ‘Country of Particular Concern’ by USCIRF ! Similarly Pakistan has been funding various global institutions for highlighting the faultlines of Bharat . For example, Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI), headquartered at Islamabad, which is affiliated with the National Security Divison of Pakistan . IPRI has been sponsoring a research project on minorities in Bharat at Deikin University with a grant of $126,462 .

Thus, Pakistan have been employing Fifth Generation War tactics against Bharat, but in response to it Bharat’s strategy have been equally productive . Countering fake information through PIB factcheck during Operation Sindoor, the strategic and operational efficiency of Bharat’s Intelligence agencies in bursting the spy network in the post-Operation Sindoor period are a testimony to the fact that Bharat is ready for the new War Format . Those alleging that Modi’s diplomacy during the Operation Sindoor has been a failure have to understand that this war against terrorism have exposed the double standards of West on terrorism . Prime Minister Modi’s policy of zero tolerance against terrorism has been exemplified by the stringent diplomatic steps such as suspension of Indus Water Treaty and Bharat’s non signing of Shanghai Cooperation Organistaion’s (SCO) statement for its exclusion of condemning the inhumane Pahalgam Attack . However, the format of War towards which we are moving is a diverse format which blends kinetic as well as non kinetic tools. So there is a need for the Bharat’s security apparatus to understand this . Prime Minister Modi’s term of ‘New Age Warfare’ has been in a complete consonance with this and thus there is a need to adapt a elastic defence strategy for this New Age Warfare !

(Divyansh Kala is a columnist, based in Delhi frequently writing on issues related to National Security Policy.)