You don't win by begging others.

Four days back at least 40 soldiers of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) were killed in Kashmir in a suicide attack when a car packed with explosives rammed a bus they were traveling in. Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), a terror group based in Pakistan, claimed responsibility. According to script, Pakistan condemned the attack, denied any link to it and condemned the Indian government for blaming Pakistan without any proof. In a show of leadership Prime Minister Modi revoked the Most Favored Nation (MFN) status to Pakistan which is really cosmetic because India's trade with Pakistan is only 0.31% of our total trade with the world. The MFN status was granted to Pakistan in 1996 but Pakistan never reciprocated by granting a similar status to India. In 1999, Pakistani forces occupied Kargil disguised as Kashmiri shepherds. We regained Kargil with a loss of 527 soldiers and 1,363 wounded. In 2001, the same JeM, along with its best friends in Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), attacked the Parliament in New Delhi killing 14 people. In 2008, LeT terrorists attacked Mumbai killing 174 people. One terrorist Ajmal Kasab was captured alive and after denying for over a year Pakistan admitted that he was indeed its citizen. This when his father had already identified him from photographs. In 2016, 17 soldiers were killed in Uri in an attack on Brigade Headquarters by 4-6 JeM terrorists. In response, Modi sent soldiers across the border in, what has been celebrated as, 'surgical strikes'. The second anniversary was jubilantly celebrated last year. The major who led the strike described how difficult it was to get his men back to India under heavy firing from Pakistani forces. "At one point, the bullets were so close, they were whistling past our ears," he wrote. It is easy to celebrate when you risk nothing. In all this time Pakistan was still a most favored nation for trade. We are so generous. In addition to withdrawing the MFN status Modi has vowed to isolate Pakistan internationally. How exactly? The Foreign Secretary has met the heads of missions of 25 countries to tell them how bad Pakistan is. A confident Pakistani Foreign Minister SM Qureshi said that Modi will never be able to isolate Pakistan. "India should prioritise peace and stability in the region," he taunted. Pakistan has supporters in the West. In 2015, Barack Obama accepted invitation to our Republic Day parade. How he threatened Modi we do not know but since then Modi has resorted to the old 'constructive dialogue' routine. He called it "constructive engagement', but it is the same old same old. The sacrifice of our soldiers may not be in vain. It has taken jobless growth, plight of farmers and the Rafale controversy away from public debate. It gives Modi an opportunity to fulminate till elections in April. Verbal surgical strikes.