My thoughts about the book "Triumph of Truth: Rajiv Gandhi Assassination-The Investigation"

Rajiv Gandhi

I was just 7+ years old on that day May 21 1991. I hardly remember anything other than the sights of people grouping themselves here and there talking about something when I went with my father to buy milk the next day morning. For India, Rajiv Gandhi was the most charismatic leader in the world. Countrymen during those days were really proud to have such a young, energetic leader (Those were the days when media was controlled by Government and only the better side of them are known to public).

Rajiv Gandhi was a pilot - becoming a pilot was my childhood dream (Sudha and Dandapani my 5th standard class mates only knew this - let’s get back to the subject). I learnt about Rajiv Gandhi when I visited Indira Gandhi museum in Delhi with my family some years back. His death and the modus operandi made me to think "was he so powerful?"

What provoked me?

Later during the final days of Lankan civil war - the social media was bursting with Pro-LTTE messages, I forced myself to learn about their act of eliminating Rajiv. So I did what anyone else would have done - Google. I stumbled upon a book and two movies:

1. Triumph of Truth: Rajiv Gandhi Assassination-The Investigation

2. Mission 90 days (Malayalam movie directed by Major Ravi who participated in operation to nab Sivarasan)

3. Kuppi (Kannada / Tamil bilingual movie about the steps taken by Sivarasan to escape Indian authorities).

I downloaded those two movies and watched them.

Mission 90 days was actually the NSG version of the investigation claiming all credits to them and ignoring DRK.

Kuppi was the police version of the investigation claiming all credits to Chennai and Bangalore Police ignoring the black cats.

I have heard my father talking high about Mr.D.R. Karthikeyan who investigated the assassination way back (same reason - no parallel media investigation). I purchased the book through bookadda.com authored by the D.R.K and his deputy Radha Vinod Raju.

The Book:

Briefing the assassination:

DRK presents some of his meetings with Rajiv and describes how humble and charismatic our leader was during those days. DRK wonders how Rajiv took the wheels on an open jeep during his tour in Karnataka. Apart from these incidents, the book details the happenings of the ill-fated day of 21 May 1991.

Mr. DRK on his own words says investigation is to find

1. Who did it?

2. How they did it?

3. Why they did it?

Regarding the first two questions - DRK and his team did a terrific job with the resources at their disposal in those days. With limited technical facilities they tracked evidences against one of the most advanced and dreadful team.

But, when it comes to the third question - the whole book points LTTE, their intention to eliminate Rajiv for their homeland struggle. However, the very point focussing the whole assassination on LTTE makes me think there is something more.

Excuse me MR. DRK:

Below are few question that strikes me when I read the book:

1. The book says - Sivarasan and Subha escaped to Bangalore from Madras in a tanker truck without police checking it.

The whole Indian east cost was sealed to stop any escape.

The state of TN was under emergency with full powers to security agency to nab the murderers at any cost. All the escape routes, travel junctures are scanned every minute and sub marines intercepting radio signals in the Bay of Bengal.

 How can the reader believe that the tanker escaped without police check. I think it went through the police check post, but still slipped off due to negligence or inside play

2. Death of smuggler Shanmugam - he is the man who received the hit team in Kodiakarai coastal area. He hid scores of arms, ammunitions, communication devices in his farm. The police arrested him and that arrest was termed "big fish". Just few hours later, he was announced absconding and found dead just 500 mts away from the same police station hanging in a tree but with a different costume.

 It is unbelievable - for TN police take 48+ hours to find someone hanging just 500 mts away from the escape place.

 Why was his costume changed (from dhoti to lungi before suicide?)

3. When Sivarasan was surrounded in Bangalore outskirts - his hideout was guarded for more than day giving him enough time to sit back and think of escape route or suicide.

 DRK being the head of the SIT doesn't need to consult with anyone before striking the hideout once detected as they did in Indira Nagar in Bangalore a few weeks before they surrounded Sivarasan.

 Still the message was conveyed to "some" superiors and waited for more commandos and more anti cyanide medicines and gave enough time for the hit team to commit a mass suicide.

4. All investigative books on this assassination says that no one knows who built the bomb that killed Rajiv. But a recent movie on this case "Madras cafe" - they show a German chemical engineer working on building a plastic explosive that blasted our ex-pm.

5. Video evidences - DRK says that video cameras were shut down and intended to capture only when Rajiv takes on the dais - this is not true. Ragothaman, one of the officers in the SIT specified that they have tampered video tapes and they show nothing significant or may be the significant parts are erased.

He also goes on to say on record that Sivarasan's notebook mention the exact time of arrival of Rajiv Gandhi to Chennai airport. He says that the rescheduled arrival time known only to persons in Hyderabad airport was somehow communicated to Sivarasan - how can this be done without any inside play.

With such a huge man hunt and investigative team with all resources was able to nail only LTTE for this assassination makes any reader think that there is definitely a larger conspiracy.

1. Rajiv trying to be a "USA" of south Asia (preventing a coupe in Maldives, IPFK etc.)

2. Western powers wanted control of Triconamalee port to control south East Asian trade routes.

3. LTTE was just the hit man of a bigger conspiracy including many terrorists groups.

4. Arms manufacturing companies wanted him to be silenced to keep their arms selling to the civil war etc. and etc.

Does God answer all these questions - no we have our own Multi-Disciplinary Monitoring Agency working on these for more than a decade. Great job!!!