India, Aug. 26 -- Prime Minister Narendra Modi told India's top military leadership to "teach Pakistan a big lesson" following the Pahalgam terror attack and authorised the armed forces to decide the timing of their response, former Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan (retd) said on Tuesday.

Speaking at an event hosted by the Vivekananda International Foundation, Chauhan revealed details of a crucial April 29 meeting attended by Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, the three service chiefs and the former CDS.

According to Chauhan, the meeting concluded that India could not tolerate cross-border terrorism and needed to deliver an "unthinkable" response.

"The big decision there was that we s...