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At first, four theories had circulated: the bomb was under the red carpet, hidden in a basket of flowers, hurled in the air, or concealed in a garland
Rajiv Gandhi, born August 20, 1944, was assassinated on May 2, 1991. (File Photo)
India’s former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was born on August 20, 1944, in a Mumbai hospital. Had he lived, he would have turned 81 today. His presence would likely have shaped Indian politics in very different ways. But history took another turn on May 2, 1991, when he walked into a rally at Sriperumbudur near Chennai, unaware that death awaited him in the form of a human bomb.
That night, the first reports reaching newspaper offices spoke only of a blast at his public meeting. Within hours, the horrifying confirmation came in that Rajiv Gandhi had been killed in a massive explosion. The entire country was stunned, unable to comprehend that a national leader could be assassinated in such a brutal fashion.
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For two days, there was silence about who carried out the killing, why it was done, or how it had been planned. Then, investigators pieced together the chilling details. The assassin was a woman, who bent to touch Gandhi’s feet, triggering a bomb strapped to her body. Within seconds, 18 people, including Rajiv Gandhi and the suicide bomber, were dead.
P Chandrashekhar, Director of Tamil Nadu’s Forensic Science Department, reached the scene within hours of the blast. For two days, he investigated quietly before presenting a preliminary report that turned the case on its head.
Chandrashekhar concluded that the bomb had been worn like a belt by a woman dressed in a green salwar-kurta. Photographs taken moments before the explosion confirmed her presence, she was the one bending down to touch Gandhi’s feet when the blast occurred.
At first, four theories had circulated: the bomb was under the red carpet, hidden in a basket of flowers, hurled in the air, or concealed in a garland. Chandrashekhar rejected all of them. The damage patterns, undisturbed carpet, and absence of basket fragments made these impossible. The explosion’s intensity was concentrated within a circle around Gandhi, pointing clearly to a body-borne device.
When Chandrashekhar examined the remains of 16 victims, one body stood out. It belonged to a woman whose face was partially intact, but the back of her head and torso were blown away. Parts of a denim vest with Velcro straps were recovered from the site, evidence that the bomb had been secured to her waist under her clothing. The investigation confirmed she was the assassin. Later, she was identified as Dhanu, a member of the LTTE.
Eyewitness accounts and forensic reconstruction revealed the sequence. As Dhanu bent to touch Gandhi’s feet, he instinctively lowered himself to lift her up, a gesture of humility he was known for. At that instant, the trigger was pressed. The blast tore through the crowd, leaving Gandhi fatally injured. His face was destroyed, his bones scattered by the force of the detonation.
It took Chandrashekhar six months to compile a detailed report, supported by photographs taken before and after the tragedy. The conclusion was unambiguous: Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated by a suicide bomber disguised as a devotee seeking blessings.
The trial court sentenced 26 people in connection with the assassination. In 1999, the Supreme Court acquitted 19 of them, while four – Nalini, Murugan alias Sriharan, Santhan, and Perarivalan – were given the death penalty. Three others, Ravichandran, Robert Payas, and Jayakumar, were sentenced to life imprisonment.
Nalini’s sentence was later commuted to life on the Tamil Nadu Governor’s orders, while the President rejected mercy petitions of the others in 2011. Over the decades, one by one, the convicts completed their prison terms or were granted release.
In November 2022, the Supreme Court ordered the release of Nalini Sriharan after she had spent more than 30 years behind bars. Other convicts, including Murugan, Jayakumar, and Robert Payas, were freed earlier and sent to Sri Lanka. Today, no one remains in jail for the murder of Rajiv Gandhi.
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