The goal isnt purely to "pound" Pakistan but to weaken it enough ala Syria that the military's status breaks which because of its "parasite" nature within the state rather than just one pillar causes the state to collapse.
Agree.. The Syrian example is stark, There is a China factor however. Unless Pakistan is flattened quickly and the leadership decapitated ( either through direct drone strikes or through proxies), merely weakening Pakistan could result in a Chinese intervention; not on the Sino-Indian border, but directly within Pakistan, similar to the way Russia militarily intervened to save the Bashar Al Assad regime. Much later bogged down in Ukraine Russia was unable to save Bashar Al Assad.
It is unlikely that India will give China this opportunity. India is planning a swift collapse like Gaddafi in Libya or later Bashar Al Assad in Syria. Pakistan has a festering insurgency, exactly the way Syria and Libya had. India loves supporting ethnic insurgencies and has a precedent and nostalgia for the famous 1971 collapse and surrender in Dhaka before the US Seventh Fleet Task Force could intervene. There are differences from the 1971 situation. The China factor is unpredictable. China may or may not step in to save Pakistan but it will likely pump a lot of weapons after the collapse to the resistance against Indian occupation.
The nuclear weapons have been bargained for already back in 2011 that the window to use them is so narrow and unless the will/support to use them immense - their locations will ensure that majority are neutralized by "frenemies" and the remaining are bargained away for later with whatever remains of PA.
Regardless of the status of the nuclear weapons, these will not be used. No one in
this ( Tik Tok ) generation wants to be vaporized especially when there is a strong likelihood that the nuclear strikes will be a one way street.
However, before we get to such doom and gloom scenarios - the strategy of Pakistan to basically tie its failure as too costly for its allies and "friends" can be plainly viewed.
If India can convince the world that with its 5 million army and $4 trillion economy it can occupy, and run Pakistan as a colony, the world ( including Pakistan's so-called Ummah friends) will be much relieved to see the only "Islamic " nuclear power go into the history books forever. Unfortunately India's record of handling insurgencies in Sri Lanka and its own North East is spotty at best, India is banking on its soft power and social media propaganda to convince the Pakistani Gen Z generation that their future lies in integrating back into India and reverting to their former religion. The goodies are Bollywood, cricket, and a $4 trillion economy.
Infact, lets say Pakistan now deploys troops to Gaza, India will be compelled again to hold off as soon as it is determined it can claim some upper hand to satisfy its core goals.
I doubt if deployment of troops in Gaza would deter India from launching an aggression. Operation Parakaram was launched against Pakistan even as just a two years earlier Indian and Pakistani troops were jointly serving in UN peacekeeping forces in Bosnia and elsewhere.
The destruction of Pakistan is a "utopia" for all of India and Bhaktoras - a strong account of "victory" regardless of actual impact to the status quo is more important.
The Bhaktoras realize that an illusion of "victory' can be sustained only for a brief period and Pakistan always rebounds and portrays its own narrative. This is humiliating for domestic politics and also for the Indian Armed Forces themselves. There is an ominous transformation however. For the first time the Indian Armed forces are talking of a
Dharamyudh or Holy War where the real destruction of Pakistan, and Bangladesh ( also the elimination of the Indian Muslims) is the objective, not optics.