The Sunday Guardian
A Prabhakaran associate reveals
why the LTTE leader wanted to kill Rajiv Gandhi.
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| Selvarasa Pathmanathan |
Selvarasa Pathmanathan or
"KP" (56) was LTTE supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran's oldest and most
trusted associate, first coming in contact with him in 1976. In 1982,
Prabhakaran sent him to Chennai in India to coordinate funding for the group as
well as procurement of weapons, explosives and other materiel needed for LTTE
operations in Sri Lanka. Two years after Rajiv Gandhi sent in the IPKF to
LTTE-held areas of Sri Lanka in 1987, "KP" shifted to Bangkok,
marrying a Thai girl and fathering a daughter. From there as well, he ensured a
steady supply of cash, weaponry and provisions for the fighters back home. However,
the restrictions on transfer of funds and purchase of weaponry and explosives
put in place by the US after 9/11 severely handicapped his functioning, leading
to a sharp fall in supplies. As a consequence, Prabhakaran removed him as chief
of the International Department of the LTTE in 2002. However, less than four
months away from his own demise, the LTTE supremo asked "KP" to once
again take charge of international operations from Thailand itself, a request
that was immediately accepted. On 18 May, a little after 6 p.m., all contact
with Prabhakaran and his associate Soosai ceased. The supremo was dead, as was
his organisation. "KP" surrendered to the Sri Lankan authorities and
was placed under house arrest, from where on 9 August he talked to Madhav Nalapat:
Q: Why did Prabhakaran
order the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi?
A: He was
convinced that Rajiv wanted him to be killed. He was worried that the Congress
may win the 1991 polls and that Rajiv would once again send in the IPKF, this
time to finish him off. So he decided to get him first.
Q: Who gave him that
idea?
A: (After a
pause) A politician from Tamil Nadu, whom Prabhakaran trusted, told him that
his information was that Rajiv was angry about his refusing to give up the
Eelam (independent Tamil homeland) demand, and that (the politician had
information that) Rajiv wanted to take revenge by killing Prabhakaran. Later,
when other politicians in Tamil Nadu told him that the Congress was likely to
come back to power, he gave orders to eliminate Rajiv Gandhi. (This was about)
five months before the parliamentary elections of 1991.
Q: Who is that
politician?
A: I am sorry, I
can't give the name. He is still around and very senior. You must remember that
even by that time, Prabhakaran was very isolated. Almost all his sources for
information about India came from Tamil Nadu. And it turned out that the
Congress (and its ally, the AIADMK) did very well in that state. The mistake
Prabhakaran's informants made was to believe that all of India would follow the
Tamil Nadu pattern and give a majority to Congress.
Q: But Rajiv offered
Prabhakaran a good deal in 1988. The Tigers would have got substantial autonomy
for the areas they were interested in. Why did Prabhakaran go back on his
agreement with Rajiv?
A: You must remember
that Prabhakaran was fixed on Eelam. At no stage was he prepared to accept
anything less than a wholly independent Tamil state. He said that he was forced
to pretend to agree so as to come back and resume the struggle. He had no
choice. Besides, he mistrusted Rajiv's newfound closeness with (President)
Jayewardene. This was why he believed the Tamil Nadu politician who told him
Rajiv wanted him dead.
Q: Why was Prabhakaran
so adamant on Eelam?
A: You must
understand his psychology. From a young age, he had put aside everything to
focus on Eelam. He saw himself as the successor to the Chola kings, and wanted
to create a new Tamil kingdom that would rival theirs in greatness
Q: Out of a tiny bit
of land in the north of Sri Lanka?
A: To Prabhakaran, winning
control over the north and part of the west and east coasts of Sri Lanka would
just be the beginning. The intention was to use the territory to
"prepare" the Tamil Nadu people to revolt against Delhi the way he
had against Colombo. What few know is that some Tamil Nadu politicians
encouraged this dream by saying that they too favoured the extension of Eelam
to India.
Q: Who were they?
A: I won't
reveal their names. All I can say is that Prabhakaran was in regular touch with
Karunanidhi, Nedumaran, Vaiko and Ramadoss. All four encouraged him in various
ways. One point he made often to me was that Tamil Nadu politicians (who were
in touch with him) were supporters of freedom for the Tamils only when they
were out of power. Once in office, they became silent about the need for (a
greater) Eelam.
Q: What were the
LTTE's last days like? You were in touch with Prabhakaran and his associates
almost to the end.
A: Many of those with him saw
that they were lost when Killinochi fell in January 2008. Some used to confide
this to me on satellite telephone. However, none dared tell Prabhakaran that he
was defeated. They knew that if he heard something that he disliked, he could
strip that person of all his powers or even finish him off. Hence even Pottu
Amman gave him an optimistic picture, even though he knew from end-January 2008
that the game was up and that the Sri Lankan Army had won.
Q: What was
Prabhakaran hoping for? A miracle?
A: He had a lot
of faith in the Europeans, especially (Norwegian Foreign Minister) Eric
Solheim. From 2006 onwards, Solheim had been putting pressure on Colombo to
concede to LTTE demands. He had a lot of respect for Prabhakaran and saw him
not as a terrorist the way some others did, but as a freedom fighter. Solheim
thought that Prabhakaran was a great warrior who could always run circles
around the Sri Lankan Army. Prabhakaran knew that Norway and other European
powers had put pressure on the UN to come up with an agreement that would
rescue him and salvage his cause.
Q: What kind of
agreement?
A: The Europeans
and the UN wanted the Sri Lankan government to agree to a "No Fire
Zone", where LTTE cadres could move about in safety. This was agreed to at
first, but then the LTTE continued to fire on Sri Lankan soldiers from within
the zone, so the agreement broke down. Even during the last days, Norway
ensured that the UN work towards bringing Prabhakaran as well as other LTTE
leaders and their families to safety in Eritrea. However, in 2008, nothing
worked. The Sri Lankan Army continued its offensive until the end.
Q: Did Prabhakaran try
to escape during those final days?
A: Yes. On 13
May he decided to escape into a nearby jungle and from there, try and sail away
to safety in a small craft. Two days later, he and a few bodyguards and associates
tried to escape from their bunker. However, the Sri Lankan Army pickets were
too numerous, and they could not break through. From then on, his only hope was
that the Europeans and Delhi would force Colombo to agree to a ceasefire. But
that never happened.
Q: What was the last
day like?
A: I do not
know. Each hour I used to get a call from the remaining satellite phone, but
the previous day, Pottu Amman had told me that if the interval (between calls)
was more than an hour, it would mean that there was nobody left. I got his last
call at 6 p.m. on 18 May 2008. After that, silence
Courtesy: The Sunday Guardian
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