Indian intelligence agencies have learned that the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) is heading towards a major fracture, signalling a period of heightened instability within Pakistan. For decades, the organisation has been Islamabad’s most dependable proxy, unwavering in obedience to the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Now, senior cadres are reportedly expressing open dissent — a first in the group’s history.

Operation Sindoor becomes the breaking point

According to an Intelligence Bureau official, the turning point was Operation Sindoor, during which the LeT reportedly suffered significant losses to its infrastructure. Efforts to regroup have been slow, and many operatives feel they were inadequately protected by both the ISI and the Pakistan Army.

Though the ISI initially managed to smooth over tensions, the deeper crisis resurfaced when the army and ISI directed the LeT to fight the Taliban, Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), and the Balochistan Nationalist Army (BLA) — a move that the group’s members view with deep resentment.

Forced to fight ‘their own’ to protect foreign interests

Officials note that LeT cadres are increasingly frustrated with what they perceive as Pakistan catering excessively to Chinese and Western strategic priorities, particularly with both countries seeking access to rare-earth resources in Balochistan.

Since Pakistan’s forces have struggled against the TTP and BLA in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the establishment has reportedly attempted to align the LeT with Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP) — despite ISKP’s hostility towards the Afghan Taliban, whom the LeT openly supports.

This contradiction has sparked widespread anger within the Lashkar leadership.

Dissent goes public as commander lashes out at Pakistan’s establishment

The unrest spilled into the open when a video of senior LeT commander Mohammad Ashfaq Rana went viral. In it, he accuses Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir of exploiting the organisation while failing to safeguard Pakistan’s interests.

Rana criticises the country’s spiralling debt and alleges that corruption has drained national resources, leaving Pakistan in ruin.

Absence of Hafiz Saeed raises further questions

Intelligence officials point out that the near-total disappearance of LeT founder Hafiz Saeed from public view is itself telling. The organisation has historically had fiercely loyal cadres, and instances of rebellion have been virtually nonexistent — raising alarms about the scale of the current crisis.

A wider regional security threat

If the dissent hardens and disgruntled LeT operatives defect to groups like the TTP, analysts warn that Pakistan could face a deeper internal security collapse. A senior official also noted that a similar rupture could spread to the Jaish-e-Mohammad, further destabilising the region.
IANS