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recently, Mentor A long -readed published by Linda Kristler was published for a long time in which a striking question was asked: Are we watching the death of international law? His article explored the state, staggering the global rules-based orders, pointing to the efforts to justify Russia through Ukraine’s international legal forums, and demonstrated a clear inertia to those mechanisms. However, deep implications were not only institutional weakness, but the increasing irrelevance of international law in the era of strategic disintegration, law and fragmented geopolitical alignment.
For India, it is no longer a distant concern. In May 2025, cyber deadlock with Pakistan, Operation Sindoor was dubbed, brought to a sharp focus. While traditional news outlets highlighted border growth, a parallel collision was in the digital realm. India, directed by both India and citizen digital infrastructure, have faced several cyber attacks. Strategic property, public health system and election database were investigated. Social media platforms were filled with stressful narratives, aims to reduce stress and sow mistrust.
Even today, security agencies prevent frequent infiltration efforts that target important infrastructure, stating that the danger is going on and possibly only public attention will obtain public attention when it triggers tangible national or regional consequences.
Unlike traditional war, cyber conflict erases clear lines between soldiers and citizens, states and non-state actors, peace and war. During Operation Sindor, attacks on India were detected through several courts – including Pakistan, Bangladesh, Turkey, Malaysia and North Korea – using anonymous protocols and decentralized networks. Criminals were difficult to pinpoint, and legal measures were almost impossible. Even when groups such as APT-36, a cyber unit associated with Pakistan were identified, international legal action was practically out of reach.
International law, large -scale state sovereignty, regional integrity, and the perceals of the Second World War II of the Armed Conflict, struggled to incorporate or even define the nature of the 21st century threats. India, like many other countries, find itself a hemled through this old architecture.
The convention on cybercrime, also known as the Budapest Convention, is one of some multilateral treaties addressing cyber -related crimes. However, it suffers by limited global consent. India has refrained from signature, citing concerns on sovereignty and unilateral jurisdiction. In moments such as Operation Sindoor, such hesitation was justified, yet the absence of any other binding structure left India for prevention of real -time legal equipment or forums.
This vacuum is not limited to cyberspace. Global inactivity on climate finance, inequalities in trade arbitration, and selective enforcement by the International Criminal Court (ICC) have all contributed to reducing confidence in the current order. What India faced during Operation Sindoor is a symbol of a broader tendency: when the rules no longer serve many, they lose their validity.
Nevertheless, this moment of crisis gives India an opening. As an emerging power with a strong legal tradition and growing global impact, India should claim the leadership role in re -introducing international law. This is not only about defending our sovereignty, but also about co-writing of a fair, legal structure ready for future.
India should take initiative to call a new global dialogue on cyber norms and accountability. Once like a geneva conferences, after coding the laws of war, now there is an immediate requirement of a binding international treaty on cyber conduct. Such structures should establish criteria against state-proposed cyber sabotage, political disintegration operations and AI-run war. It should also be constructed in mechanisms for atribution, prevention and restrictions that do not depend on the political will of some major actors.
At home, the legal system must develop to meet these international threats while protecting democratic freedom. For the purpose of dealing with misinformation such as Karnataka’s proposed incorrect information bill, it should be underpassed to ensure that they do not encroach on the freedom of dissatisfaction or expression. The regulatory structure should be equipped with transparent, proportional and judicial inspection.
Equally, India’s cyber infrastructure should be strengthened. Bodies such as Certificate and Indian Cybercrime Coordination Center (i4C) should be empowered not only to detect and respond to domestic threats, but also to cooperate meaningfully with international partners. Public Education Campaign, Technology-Industries Participation and clear data governance policies will be important.
The question is not whether international law is dying, but can it be reborn. Option is a flow to a global order ruled by power rather than the principle. India, with its democratic credibility and increasing geopolitical influence, is specific to run the world towards the legal structure showing the realities of the 21st century. As global institutions, from multilateral forums to international regulatory bodies, a vacuum is rapidly visible in reliable legal leadership, struggling to keep pace with emerging hazards such as cyberwafare and loffare.
At this moment of flow, it is not just a mandatory to recover the leadership in global legal reform. This is an opportunity to shape the criteria and rules that will define our collective future.
This article is written by South Asia Democratic Forum, Brussels, Senior Partner, Senior Partner, Senior Sarma.
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