'Intelligence agencies, Army let him down': Mani Shankar Aiyar defends Rajiv Gandhi's Sri Lanka policy

Mani Shankar Aiyar

Senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar blamed failures within the Indian establishment for the collapse of Rajiv Gandhi’s Sri Lanka policy, remarking the intelligence and army “let him down” even as Gandhi persisted with what he believed was a necessary mission to preserve the island’s and India’s integrity.

Speaking at a session titled “Reassessing Rajiv Gandhi’s legacy for India’s future” at the Khushwant Singh Litfest, Aiyar defended the 1987 accord and the deployment of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) as an effort to prevent the disintegration of Sri Lanka and avert a spillover that might inflame separatist sentiment in Tamil Nadu.

“Rajiv knew that disintegration in Sri Lanka might cause disintegration in India,” Aiyar said, adding that the accord had the army’s agreement and envisaged peacekeepers acting at Colombo’s request to stabilise the country, not to conquer it. However, that operation went badly wrong, he said, flagging the alleged shortcomings in planning and execution and accused parts of the Indian establishment of misreading the ground.

Aiyar on Sunday heaped praise on former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi leadership. Addressing the Khushwant Singh Literary Festival 2025, Aiyar drew sharp contrasts between Rajiv Gandhi's political choices and the policies of the current administration, which he accused of neglecting India's geographic and social peripheries.

The Congress leader further took a swipe at the PM Narendra Modi-led Union Government, stating that the country is "burning" at separate frontiers at present. Aiyar was responding to a question by former Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar who asked him about the "healing touch" implemented by the Rajiv Gandhi government in response to challenges in Punjab, Kashmir, and Assam.

Citing the Punjab, Assam, Mizoram, Darjeeling, and Kashmir accords, Aiyar said the late Prime Minister's approach was unique in that he consistently put national interest over party politics.

"What was common to all of them," Aiyar said, "was that Rajiv Gandhi sacrificed the immediate party interest of the Congress for the sake of the country as a whole." "Today, it is our frontiers that are burning. We have problems in the Thar Desert which are still not out. In Punjab, the BJP has destroyed itself. In Jammu and Kashmir, the pot is simmering. In Ladakh, the pot is no longer simmering; it's blowing up," Aiyar said.