Operation Sindoor was launched in May 2025 as India's military response to the terror attack at Pahalgam in April 2025, in which civilians, mostly tourists, were killed. The Indian armed forces struck terrorist infrastructure across the border, and the operation was notable for the joint tri-services media briefings that followed, in which senior officers from the Army, Navy and Air Force appeared together to explain the campaign. Air Marshal Bharti, then Director General Air Operations, presented the air component of the operation at those briefings alongside the Director General of Military Operations and a senior Navy officer, and the format itself became a talking point as an unusually direct exercise in public military communication.

The Deputy Chief of Air Staff is one of the principal staff officers at Air Headquarters, responsible for planning and operational requirements, which places the holder close to decisions on force structure and capability acquisition. Air Marshal Bharti's career arc — from Director General Air Operations during a live campaign to Deputy Chief of Air Staff — traces the route by which operational experience feeds into planning appointments. His visibility during the Operation Sindoor briefings also marked a shift in how the Indian military communicates during operations, with serving officers rather than only ministry spokespersons fronting the account.