US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has called on Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to unequivocally condemn the “unconscionable” Pahalgam terror attack and act to defuse increasing tensions with India, the US State Department said on Thursday.

In a recap of the call, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce reported that Rubio also urged Pakistan to work with investigation attempts into the attack and reopen direct diplomatic communications with India. “Both leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to holding terrorists accountable for their heinous acts,” Bruce further added.

The diplomatic initiative comes after the April 22 terror strike in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, in which Pakistan-sponsored terrorists killed 26 individuals, including mostly tourists, and injured several others. The attack has triggered a sharp decline in India-Pakistan relations.

Escalating Cross-Border Tensions After The Attack

Following the Pahalgam incident, India has witnessed a rising tide of ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC). Indian security forces have accelerated counter-terror operations in the Kashmir Valley, along with a reaction to cross-LoC firing in Kupwara, Poonch, Tutmari Gali, and Rampur sectors.

India has been taking a series of retaliatory steps, such as suspending the Indus Water Treaty, stopping operations at the Attari Integrated Check Post, closing Pakistani airspace access, and lowering diplomatic representation in both nations. 

India’s Stern Warning Against Terrorism

After the attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged that India would pursue and punish all of them. “India will pursue terrorists and their backers to the ends of the Earth. Terrorism will not go unpunished,” he said.

A day later, the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) convened to discuss the scenario. Officials apprised the CCS of cross-border connections between the attackers, pointing out that the attack was during successful Jammu and Kashmir elections and along its trajectory of economic recovery.

The US call for restraint and responsibility comes against a backdrop of increasing international unease regarding South Asian stability.

NEW DELHI: US Secretary of State Rubio spoke with external affairs minister S Jaishankar and Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif on late Wednesday, urging them to “de-escalate tensions” between the two nations. He asked Sharif to condemn the Pahalgama attack that has soured the relations between the two nations.
“Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke with Indian external affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar today. The Secretary expressed his sorrow for the lives lost in the horrific terrorist attack in Pahalgam, and reaffirmed the United States’ commitment to cooperation with India against terrorism. He also encouraged India to work with Pakistan to de-escalate tensions and maintain peace and security in South Asia,” US state department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said.
During his conversation with Sharif, Rubio emphasized the importance of condemning the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack and called on Pakistani authorities to cooperate fully in the investigation of what he described as a “this unconscionable attack.”
He further urged Pakistan to engage with India in efforts to de-escalate tensions, restore direct communication channels, and uphold regional peace and stability in South Asia.
However, Sharif accused India of engaging in “escalatory and provocative behavior,” according to a statement from Islamabad.
“India’s provocations would only serve to distract Pakistan from its ongoing efforts to defeat terrorism, particularly from militant groups,” Sharif said, according to the statement released by his office.
In the wake of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, which claimed the lives of 26 civilians—mostly tourists—and left many injured, ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir have seen a sharp uptick. The attack, carried out by Pakistan-backed terrorists, has triggered a series of strong countermeasures from India.
In response, government has taken several diplomatic and strategic steps, including suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, shutting down the Integrated Check Post at Attari, and moving to reduce the strength of high commissions. Additionally, the armed forces have been granted full operational freedom to determine the nature and timing of a suitable response.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) has opposed the Union Ministry of Defence (MoD)’s decision to approve a new Sainik School in Madhya Pradesh’s Narsinghpur, named after State Cabinet Minister Prahlad Singh Patel’s late nephew. 

Speaking to The Hindu on Wednesday, CPI (M) state secretary Jaswinder Singh raised objections to naming the new school Maninagendra Singh Sainik School and alleged that the person the school is being named after had multiple cases against him, including Dalit atrocities. 

Earlier on April 28, Mr. Patel had shared a letter by the Sainik School Society, MoD, which gave a ‘provisional approval’ for the school to be established by Maninagendra Singh Foundation in Narsinghpur’s Gotegaon, which is also Mr. Patel’s native place. 

The NGO was formed in May 2023 after the death of Maninagendra Singh alias Monu Patel, son of Mr. Patel’s brother and former BJP MLA Jalam Singh Patel.  

The school building is currently under construction and it will be Madhya Pradesh’s sixth Sainik School under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model. 

The approval came after Mr. Patel, who is a former union minister himself, called on Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in New Delhi on April 25. 

“Sainik School not only provides education to children but also inculcates values ​​to give supreme sacrifice for the country. I am grateful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defense Minister Rajnath Singh for giving permission to start this Yagya Shala for the nation at my birthplace Shridham (Gotegaon),” Mr. Patel had written on X after the meeting. 

The CPI (M) leader said Maninagendra Singh had multiple cases against him before his death. 

“He was jailed in a case of assaulting a Dalit youth. His wife had also accused him and his family of harassment and domestic violence and filed complaints against them. It is very humiliating that we are going to open a Sainik School named after him,” he said, adding that the CPI (M) will write to the State Governor Mangubhai Patel and the Defence Minister.

As per multiple news reports, a court in Narsinghpur in 2021 had sentenced Maninagendra Singh and four other men for one year for assaulting a man in 2011. He, however, was granted bail by the M.P. High Court in the case. 

He had also been arrested in 2023 in a case of thrashing a Dalit man in 2019, as per a report.

While Mr. Patel’s office did not respond to The Hindu’s calls, Mr. Jalam Singh Patel denied the allegations against his son and said that he himself had studied in an Military school in Nashik and had wished to open a school in Narsinghpur. 

“Nothing was proven in any case. People keep making allegations of this sort but it was his dream and we are starting the school for the State’s youth,” the former BJP MLA said.