THE BURNED OVER DISTRICT

And the current Prime Minister Modi is in trouble and may not be re-elected because of the various social and economic troubles besetting India. Because he prefers his agenda to solutions, he is unable to fix any of them, so he goes to the old political standby, a distraction.

Pakistan said Wednesday that it downed two Indian fighter jets and captured a pilot, escalating hostilities between the nuclear-armed neighbors a day after Indian warplanes struck inside Pakistani territory for the first time in five decades.

The rapid turn of events raised fears that the historical animosities between India and Pakistan could be steering them toward another war.

Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan urged India to settle matters through talks, referring to the nuclear weapons both countries hold and the risk of further escalation.

“All big wars have been due to miscalculation. No one knew how the war would end,” he said in a televised speech. “My question to India is that given the weapons we have, can we afford miscalculation?”

Tensions have been rising since a suicide bombing two weeks ago that hit an Indian paramilitary convoy in Kashmir, the disputed territory that has been a chronic flash point. Expectations that diplomacy and calls for calm would de-escalate the crisis have yet to show any obvious result.

In New Delhi, officials confirmed that an Indian Air Force pilot was in Pakistani custody, complicating an already tough landscape for Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of hotly contested elections this spring...In India, panic intensified around Kashmir. Hundreds of residents fled their homes, while volunteers painted large red crosses on the roofs of hospitals, to protect them in case of airstrikes.

In Pakistan, dozens of tanks were deployed to the border in broad daylight, underscoring the heightened state of alert as both sides scrambled to shore up their military positions. Such equipment usually is moved under the cloak of night.

India’s government confirmed that one of its MiG-21 fighter jets had been “lost” as it thwarted what the government said was an attempt by Pakistan’s air force to strike an unspecified target inside India. A Pakistani aircraft was shot down by an Indian fighter jet, New Delhi said, a claim that Pakistan denied.

Raveesh Kumar, the chief spokesman for India’s Ministry of External Affairs, told a news conference in New Delhi that the government was still “ascertaining the facts” behind Pakistan’s claims of having downed two aircraft, and declined to take questions.

Although both India and Pakistan say they want to resolve the current crisis diplomatically, the two governments may be beholden to their electorates, amid calls for firm military responses from both sides of the border. In Pakistan, the current crisis has shored up support for Mr. Khan, who took office six months ago and has since faced growing opposition domestically.

The crisis has not presented such an opportunity for Mr. Modi, who seemed destined just a year ago to clinch a second term as India’s prime minister. Since then, Mr. Modi has faced considerable opposition over what critics say is his mishandling of the economy ahead of the elections this spring. The capture of the Indian pilot may only weaken his position and lead to a dangerous escalation if Mr. Modi chooses to respond militarily.

“Where the danger comes in is if India does not calculate strategically but starts calculating only from the perspective of electoral benefits,” said Ajai Shukla, a retired Indian Army colonel and a defense analyst. “This is a game of uncertain outcomes, and escalation is a very dicey game.”

Will they push this past the point where they lose control of events? We can only hope not because with the Big Cheez-Wiz in the White House we have nobody capable of keeping the lid on this problem.