While inaugurating the 10th International Gita Conference, the Defence Minister of India stated that during Operation Sindoor, India’s action was guided by the message which Lord Krishna gave to the Pandavas: that war should not be fought for revenge or ambition, but to uphold righteousness. Operation Sindoor was that dharma-based ethical action which India adopted. Lord Krishna emphasises that ethical war is an unavoidable duty (svadharma), without personal attachment to the fruits of action.

On the battlefield of Kurukshetra, Lord Krishna reminds Arjuna of his kshatriya dharma —”Looking to your own duty you should never waver, for there is nothing higher for a kshatriya than a righteous war.” Dharma must be protected by wielding righteous force when needed. Adharma should be vanquished by dharma, or else it would be a sin. However, Krishna qualifies the act of war with a rider. The war must be dharmika, that is, fought according to established rules. The Mahabharata elsewhere details these rules. Some of these include not attacking a warrior who has laid down his arms, no killing of non-combatants, and no use of celestial weapons on ordinary soldiers, etc. The main tenet of Lord Krishna’s preaching is that the warrior must act without desire for fame or personal gain, or else the act becomes tainted.

The doctrine of nishkama karma is the Gita’s core principle for the ethics of war. Lord Krishna further insists on equanimity. Ethical war is fought without hatred towards the enemy and without triumph in victory. This vision teaches that one should not harbour hatred. The Pandavas fought not out of personal enmity but because adharma had........

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