In an interview to ANI, Sitharaman said the onus to prove whether a terrorist camp was hit or not during the Balakot air strikes was on Pakistan. "It is for Pakistan to show they have not been hit and that a number of people were not killed. They took 40 days to take a small group of journalists and defence attaches and limited that picnic that they had of these people only to the madrasa. I am telling you the madrasa was at the lower end of the foothill and behind the madrasa, into the dense forest was the training camp. So, Pakistan is making a mockery of itself, she said.
When questioned about the Indian government's silence on the outcome of the Balakot airstrike, the Defence Minister said, “Before the attack took place, many Pakistani websites claimed that the targeted terror camp was recruiting youngsters. The world-renowned notorious terrorist who handled many attacks like the 2008 Mumbai terror attack was calling out to young men to join him. Not just this, in fact recruiters of the terrorist outfits was even hiring retired trainers to train future jihadis. If you look into the websites you would know how many people were being trained in the camp. So from there, one can calculate an approximate number”.
Talking about her experience of handling the Balakot air strike she said, "You are not concerned that much about the success or failure of the operation. It is your men and their lives which is the major concern. You just hope that everything goes fine. I got a call at 4 'o' clock in the morning saying that everyone was safe and it was only then that I felt relieved." In the wee hours of February 26, 12 Indian Air Force Mirage-2000 fighter entered Pakistani airspace and dropped 1,000-kg laser-guided bombs on Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) camps across the Line of Control, due to which a "large number of terrorists, including top commanders, were eliminated”.
Sitharaman also spoke about her meeting with Air Force Wing Commander Abhinandhan Varthaman, who was captured by Pakistani troops a day after the air strikes and later released as a "peace gesture."
"I met him a few days after he reached Delhi. He was agile, firm and clear while talking to me. He was full of positive energy and sitting and talking to him would have motivated you to think that this is the stuff young men and women should be made of and not for a moment, he had a tone of regret. He said I am trained for handling these situations and I am also trained to keep my head high. He told me one thing and one very admirable quality was that he told me that look I am trained to face these kinds of situations and this part of my training. But I am not trained to cope with this instant publicity and popularity and I am not skilled enough to face this public appreciation and that is what I have got to learn now," said Sitharaman.
She went on to say that efforts are being made to bring former Naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav back to India. "Now it is globally being watched, the kind of efforts that MEA and also the legal department are putting at the International Court of Justice is for everybody to see. The efforts are fully out there. It is for everybody to see," she added.