I would say that India hit her targets, but that is not the same as achieving her objectives. If you consider the level of blackout training, civic medical training, movement of troops, navy that was happening before the strikes, it is obvious that India was planning a much larger and longer war and the response from the PAF killed those plans stone cold dead.
The Indians stopped the progression towards their real objectives because they did not think their air force would have been that ineffective in a fight with the PAF as it was. So, yes, India hit their targets for day #1 of their plans, but their actual strategic objectives they actually failed in. I say that, because you look at the level of engagement that the middle east has with Pakistan right now, it was precisely this that the Indians and the Israeli's wanted to stop.
The fact that the Israeli attack on Iran, and the Indian attack on Pakistan being so closely timed together is not a coincidence, but a strategic plan that both India and Israel had concocted together, that did not go to their plans. The goal was to take away both Iran and Pakistan as strategic heavy weights in the middle east/Muslim world so that Israel and India could then dominate the middle east from either ends of the middle east when the USA starts to wind down its military presence.
Why do you think Pakistan reacted the way it did to the attack on Iran? Why did the Defence Minister have those choice words for Reza Pahlavi ??? Because, it was all related, and they were aware of the strategic plans of Israel and India, it was obvious at that point that they were working together on a joint plan.
I don't have evidence for my view point, but it is my reading of the situation based on the events to date and what is "now" happening in the middle east, and the attack was part of something far bigger and more strategic than some random buildings in Pakistan being "successfully hit".
So, is the change in the middle east right now what was planned and people tried to stop it, or a consequence of the failure of the plans of India/Israel ?
So, imho the Indians failed in their actual objectives.
Iran angle is actually very interesting, that same time Iran was very effusive of Pakistan and India went particularly vicious towards Iran.
We can have a counter narrative, as a thought experiment, what if India on day one only incurred one loss but mostly hit their targets? Would they have continued perceiving weakness? Would they have launched the brahmos
One working theory is that India had to escalate to over compensate for its ineffective aerial abilities
This actually creates a disequilibrium, because if Pakistan is dominant in the Air, India either has to use the other forces or it has to escalate which is actually quite dangerous,
The brahmos attacks will simply serve as an early warning to prepare Pakistan with China support, infrastructure and runways can be replaced quite easily, lack of confidence in your Air force and strategic uncertainty cannot
You see the Indians are actually medium term very worried because China has zoomed ahead technologically, and nothing will happen before the trade agreement, and if India open a serious confrontation then trump will probably see this as defiance,
As well as this, the Bangladesh front
I'm not sure that we will ever know if India planned a longer attack, my first feeling is that they wanted to create a noise, keep Pakistan waiting and then if the air attacks could be portrayed as successful they would have the win, they chose their time and place and effectively were successful and that would be the narrative.
I'm not sure that another operation will happen very soon, but Pakistan being on the defensive on the last one was somewhat easier, in the next confrontation will Pakistan try to take control of the escalation ladder or will it try to manage it. Turkey and china are there to support, Iran and Saudi can probably help non-militarily.
Really India should be trying to appease the region somewhat for at least a short-term gain, they are simply continuing obsession with Pakistan.
