Thenmuli Rajaratnam
Encyclopedia
Thenmozhi "Gayatri" Rajaratnam (died 21 May 1991) was the assassin
who killed Rajiv Gandhi
, herself, and 14 others in a suicide bombing on May 21, 1991, in the India
n town of Sriperumbudur
in Tamil Nadu
, near Chennai
. A member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(Tamil Tigers), Rajaratnam was also known as Gayatri and Dhanu. Her birth year has not been conclusively established. It is alleged she was raped by a member of the Indian Peace Keeping Force placed in Sri Lanka during the 26 year War between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. Ironically Dhanu and Sivarasan - the key conspirator were among the militants trained by RAW
.
From left to right : Kokila Vani (Youth Congress Worker), Thenmozhi Rajaratnam (Aka Dhanu, the assassin, disguised with spectacles), Latha Kanan (A Congress volunteer), Sivarasan (The mastermind behind the attack, posed as journalist)
Rajiv Gandhi garlanding crowd before explosion or assassination:
The assassin's severed head after explosion:
to help enforce a peace accord, which earned the ire of various Tamil militant groups. The troops he had sent in 1987 had fought the Tamil separatist guerrillas. .
Rajaratnam had the belt bomb with the explosive material in her lower back region and the power pack, two switches and the circuitry in front. One switch initiated the circuitry and the other activated the bomb. The explosive used was an RDX, about 10,000 steel balls of 2 mm diameter were embedded in the bomb. After garlanding Rajiv, Rajaratnam evidently stooped to touch his feet and activated the explosive. Rajiv might have tried to stop her; his face bore the impact of the blast.
Seven years later in 1998, an Indian court convicted twenty-six people in the conspiracy to assassinate Rajiv. Upon appeal, the death sentence of only four of the twenty-six people was upheld.
Assassination
To carry out an assassination is "to murder by a sudden and/or secret attack, often for political reasons." Alternatively, assassination may be defined as "the act of deliberately killing someone, especially a public figure, usually for hire or for political reasons."An assassination may be...
who killed Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Gandhi
Rajiv Ratna Gandhi was the sixth Prime Minister of India . He took office after his mother's assassination on 31 October 1984; he himself was assassinated on 21 May 1991. He became the youngest Prime Minister of India when he took office at the age of 40.Rajiv Gandhi was the elder son of Indira...
, herself, and 14 others in a suicide bombing on May 21, 1991, in the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n town of Sriperumbudur
Sriperumbudur
Sriperumbudur is an industrial city in Kanchipuram district in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is located in proximity to Chennai. It is famous for being the birth place of Sri Ramanuja, one of the most prominent Hindu Vaishnava saints as well as the town where former Indian Prime Minister...
in Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
, near Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
. A member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was a separatist militant organization formerly based in northern Sri Lanka. Founded in May 1976 by Vellupillai Prabhakaran, it waged a violent secessionist and nationalist campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri Lanka for Tamil...
(Tamil Tigers), Rajaratnam was also known as Gayatri and Dhanu. Her birth year has not been conclusively established. It is alleged she was raped by a member of the Indian Peace Keeping Force placed in Sri Lanka during the 26 year War between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan Armed Forces. Ironically Dhanu and Sivarasan - the key conspirator were among the militants trained by RAW
Research and Analysis Wing
The Research and Analysis Wing is India's external intelligence agency. It was formed in September 1968 after the poor performance of the Intelligence Bureau in the Sino-Indian war of 1962 and the India-Pakistani war of 1965 convinced the then government of India that a specialized, independent...
.
From left to right : Kokila Vani (Youth Congress Worker), Thenmozhi Rajaratnam (Aka Dhanu, the assassin, disguised with spectacles), Latha Kanan (A Congress volunteer), Sivarasan (The mastermind behind the attack, posed as journalist)
Rajiv Gandhi garlanding crowd before explosion or assassination:
The assassin's severed head after explosion:
The assassination
Rajiv Gandhi was campaigning in Sriperumbudur for the upcoming parliamentary elections. The last time Rajiv had been in power, his government was instrumental in sending a peace keeping force into Sri LankaSri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
to help enforce a peace accord, which earned the ire of various Tamil militant groups. The troops he had sent in 1987 had fought the Tamil separatist guerrillas. .
Rajaratnam had the belt bomb with the explosive material in her lower back region and the power pack, two switches and the circuitry in front. One switch initiated the circuitry and the other activated the bomb. The explosive used was an RDX, about 10,000 steel balls of 2 mm diameter were embedded in the bomb. After garlanding Rajiv, Rajaratnam evidently stooped to touch his feet and activated the explosive. Rajiv might have tried to stop her; his face bore the impact of the blast.
Seven years later in 1998, an Indian court convicted twenty-six people in the conspiracy to assassinate Rajiv. Upon appeal, the death sentence of only four of the twenty-six people was upheld.
See also
- Liberation Tigers of Tamil EelamLiberation Tigers of Tamil EelamThe Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was a separatist militant organization formerly based in northern Sri Lanka. Founded in May 1976 by Vellupillai Prabhakaran, it waged a violent secessionist and nationalist campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri Lanka for Tamil...
- List of assassinations of the Sri Lankan Civil War