Leaked Document Exposes Raw's Role In Pahalgam False Flag Operation

By Author: Rehana Albert
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A Leak That Changed the Narrative

On May 1, 2025, a classified Indian intelligence document surfaced on Telegram, jolting South Asia’s fragile geopolitical equilibrium. Purportedly authored by senior operatives within the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW)—India’s premier foreign intelligence agency—the leaked file has exposed a carefully constructed false flag operation executed in the town of Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. The revelations contained in the document offer a rare glimpse into the operational mechanics of India’s information warfare, false attribution tactics, and regional destabilization blueprint.

Pakistan, long a vocal critic of Indian disinformation campaigns, quickly seized on the leak, calling for an international investigation. But the real value of the document lies not in its political reverberations—but in the detailed procedural architecture it lays bare. This report dissects that architecture and its implications.

Chapter 1: The Document and the Discord

The document, titled "Psy Ops and Narrative Control," outlines a timeline-driven framework to manage public perception ...
... surrounding a staged terror incident. According to initial forensics conducted by cyber-security experts in Islamabad, the file appears authentic—mirroring metadata and document formatting styles consistent with prior Indian military-intelligence correspondence.

Key details include:

Event location: Anantnag district, Pahalgam sector

Operational cover: Surveillance of tourist movement

Narrative framework: Targeting of non-Muslim civilians framed as Islamist terrorism

Timing: 36 to 48 hours of narrative buildup post-incident

Psychological strategy: Emotional shock followed by coordinated anti-Pakistan rhetoric

The document also includes detailed talking points, prepared media scripts, and a segmented deployment schedule for journalists, influencers, and pre-positioned social media operators.

Chapter 2: Narrative Control Gone Wrong

The PsyOps strategy hinged on temporal synchronization between the event and its framing. The media was instructed to go live 36 hours post-attack—after AI-enhanced visuals and witness statements had been fabricated and circulated internally. However, a premature news cycle, triggered by overzealous Indian news anchors, published anti-Pakistan claims within hours.

This deviation from the script caused a cascade of contradictions:

Victim identities didn’t match targeted profiles

Blurred footage aired before the attack's confirmed timestamp

Social media narratives lacked cohesion due to the absence of a central hashtag (as instructed to evade detection)

These anomalies, captured and analyzed by digital forensic labs in Lahore and neutral observers in Geneva, fueled speculation that the Pahalgam incident wasn’t what it appeared.

Chapter 3: Operational Anatomy

The leaked file includes annexures and logistics spreadsheets outlining:

Deployment zones for RAW field units under the guise of tourism monitoring

Media asset lists complete with Telegram, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube channel IDs

AI witness generation protocols, including speech modulation samples and background sound mapping

Data packages for misinformation campaigns, to be deployed via 200+ dummy accounts

It further outlines a fallback mechanism labeled "Alt Shopian," suggesting Shopian was a backup attack location in case of exposure. Each phase of the plan was timestamped to coincide with media manipulation and diplomatic signaling.

Chapter 4: Weaponized Diplomacy

The timing of the operation appears calibrated to coincide with the visit of U.S. Vice President JD Vance to New Delhi. The objective, according to the document, was to:

Leverage the attack as proof of India's victimhood in global counter-terrorism discussions

Shift focus from domestic unrest in Kashmir to cross-border threats

Appeal to Western media and human rights lobbies by staging non-Muslim casualties

Analysts argue that the presence of high-profile international diplomats was intended to amplify the impact of the disinformation campaign and co-opt foreign policy agendas sympathetic to India’s narrative.

Chapter 5: Manufactured Proof and Forensic Deceit

Perhaps the most damning section of the document is its guidance for planting fabricated Pakistani-origin evidence:

ISI reference manuals were to be placed in waterproof containers near the site

Pakistani SIM cards, previously unused, were to be inserted in destroyed phones

Digital forensics trails were scripted to link IPs to Karachi and Quetta

These materials were to be "accidentally" discovered by Indian Northern Command search units and leaked to embedded journalists.

Chapter 6: Internal Dissent or External Exposure?

Sources close to Indian security circles suggest the leak may have stemmed from within—possibly by mid-level RAW officers uneasy with the increasing politicization of intelligence. Discontent with the Hindutva-influenced operational doctrines is reportedly growing within sections of India’s security establishment.

Cybersecurity analysts in Singapore traced the initial upload to an Eastern Indian IP node, potentially linked to a dissident insider or a breach by a hostile foreign actor.

Chapter 7: Regional Reactions

Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has officially called for an international probe, inviting UN observers to inspect evidence. Chinese and Iranian outlets have picked up the story, framing it as further proof of India’s pattern of deceit in Kashmir.

Western media, while more cautious, has begun citing the leak in op-eds questioning India’s counter-terrorism narratives.

Meanwhile, Indian officials have neither confirmed nor denied the document’s authenticity. A limited internal inquiry has reportedly been launched but kept away from parliamentary oversight.

Chapter 8: False Flags in Context

Defense experts underscore that this isn’t India’s first alleged false flag incident. Analysts from Global South Institute and StratEdge point to:

The 2019 Pulwama bombing

The 2008 Mumbai attacks (as per claims from former Indian officials)

A series of cross-border raids attributed to "unverified militants"

The leaked document bolsters arguments that India maintains a covert doctrine of managed escalation, using staged attacks to manipulate domestic and international narratives.

Conclusion: A Moment of Reckoning

As the dust settles over Pahalgam, the leaked RAW document signals more than a failed operation—it marks a moment of reckoning for regional security discourse. The normalization of psychological warfare and false narratives as statecraft tools imperils not only truth but also the credibility of global counter-terrorism frameworks.

Unless addressed through international legal channels and transparent inquiry mechanisms, this pattern of deception may not just repeat—it may escalate.