A recipient of Bharat Ratna, Rajiv Gandhi served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in 1984.
Today marks the 34th death anniversary of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, who was assassinated on May 21, 1991. On this solemn day, let’s revisit the tragic events that led to his death and the reasons behind the conspiracy. Let’s start from the beginning — with his rise to power. After the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi by her own bodyguards in 1984, her son Rajiv Gandhi was sworn in as the Prime Minister of India by President Giani Zail Singh. At just 40 years old, he became the youngest Prime Minister in the history of the country.
The rise of LTTE
Around the same time, in 1976, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was founded by Velupillai Prabhakaran. The group aimed to establish an independent Tamil state in Sri Lanka and to resist the oppression of the Tamil people there. It is said that initially the LTTE enjoyed sympathy and support from India, especially during Indira Gandhi’s tenure, when Indian intelligence reportedly provided training and aid to Tamil rebel factions.
Indian peacekeeping force in Sri Lanka
However, the dynamic shifted dramatically in 1987 when India and Sri Lanka signed a peace accord. Under the agreement, Rajiv Gandhi deployed the Indian Peacekeeping Force (IPKF) to Sri Lanka with the objective of disarming the LTTE and restoring peace. Initially, the LTTE welcomed the Indian forces. But over time, the group grew suspicious and began viewing India’s presence as unwarranted interference. Soon hostilities broke out between the LTTE and Indian troops, leading to a violent fallout.
LTTE’s grudge against Rajiv Gandhi
The LTTE’s anger toward Rajiv Gandhi deepened after the deployment of IPKF. Though the Congress lost power in 1989, Gandhi remained a powerful figure in opposition. In 1991, during his election campaign, he mentioned in an interview that if re-elected, he would consider sending Indian forces back to Sri Lanka. The LTTE took this statement seriously, interpreting it as a threat to their survival.
The assassination plot
This fear triggered a well-coordinated assassination plot. On May 21, 1991, while Rajiv Gandhi was on a campaign trail in Tamil Nadu’s Sriperumbudur, a woman named Thenmozhi “Gayatri” Rajaratnam, posing as a supporter, approached him to garland him. She was actually a suicide bomber and an LTTE operative. Moments later, she detonated explosives hidden on her, killing Rajiv Gandhi and 13 others on the spot. It’s worth noting that intelligence had advised Rajiv Gandhi to avoid the rally, but he chose to go ahead — a decision that cost him his life.
