The Fateful Intervention: How the Sri Lankan War Led to Rajiv Gandhi's Tragic End

The echoes of the Sri Lankan civil war resonate with a profound sense of tragedy, particularly for India, given its ill-fated intervention that ultimately claimed the life of one of its most prominent leaders. This tumultuous period, stretching over decades, saw a nation torn apart by ethnic strife, with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) emerging as a formidable force fighting for a separate Tamil state in the island nation's north and east.

India, deeply concerned by the escalating conflict and the humanitarian crisis, especially involving its Tamil brethren across the Palk Strait, found itself increasingly drawn into the Sri Lankan imbroglio.

Under the leadership of then-Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, India sought to play the role of a peacemaker, culminating in the controversial Indo-Lanka Accord of 1987. This agreement aimed to establish peace, devolution of power to Tamil regions, and a cessation of hostilities. Crucially, it led to the deployment of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to disarm the LTTE and other militant groups, an endeavor that would prove to be a perilous miscalculation.

What began as a mission of peace swiftly devolved into a brutal and protracted conflict.

The IPKF, initially welcomed by some, soon found itself locked in a fierce battle against the very group it was sent to disarm – the LTTE. The Tigers, masters of guerrilla warfare, resisted the Indian forces fiercely, leading to heavy casualties on both sides. The jungles of northern Sri Lanka became a battleground, and the IPKF, designed for peacekeeping, was drawn into a full-scale war, facing an enemy it profoundly underestimated.

The operation, intended to be a swift resolution, turned into a quagmire, draining India's resources and exacting a heavy human toll on its soldiers.

After more than two years of intense fighting and mounting domestic pressure, the IPKF was eventually withdrawn in 1990 by the V.P. Singh government, an ignominious end to a mission that had started with such high hopes.

The withdrawal left a bitter taste, not only for the soldiers who fought and died but also for the political architects of the intervention. However, the tragic consequences of India’s involvement were far from over.

Less than a year after the IPKF’s return, on May 21, 1991, while campaigning in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi met a horrific end.

He was assassinated by a suicide bomber, later identified as Thenmozhi Rajaratnam (also known as Dhanu), an operative of the LTTE. The attack was a brutal act of retaliation, a direct consequence of the LTTE's deep-seated resentment against Rajiv Gandhi for sending the IPKF to Sri Lanka, which they viewed as a betrayal and an act of war against their aspirations.

The assassination sent shockwaves across India and the world, plunging the nation into mourning and political turmoil.

It stands as a stark reminder of the volatile intersection of international relations, internal conflicts, and the devastating personal cost of political decisions. The Sri Lankan civil war, and India's role within it, remains a complex and somber chapter in the history of both nations, underscoring the profound challenges of external intervention in ethnic conflicts and the enduring legacy of violence and loss.