Mystery Unravelled
INDIA TODAY’S cover story, “Diary of an Assassin” (March 10) unravels, bit by bit, the plot to kill Rajiv Gandhi. The fact that the dreaded LTTE had a Plan B in place, in case they could not eliminate Rajiv in Sriperumbudur, proves that nothing was left to chance. At the same time, the apparent ease with which the conspirators were able to put all the logistics in place prior to the strike raises serious questions about the alertness of our intelligence agencies. It’s extremely ironical that the rag-tag bunch fighting for the cause of the Tamils in Sri Lanka received their first lessons in tactical warfare from RAW. It was like history repeating itself many times over, where terrorist organisations eventually turn against the very states which had nurtured them for their own political convenience. MANJU PANT, via email
LTTE, once a weapon of India against Sri Lanka, boo- meranged, killing an able son of the country and a visionary of 21st century, Rajiv Gandhi. What is astounding today is how issues involving terrorists are being used as a leverage to consolidate votes by brazen politicians. Capital punishment is a must for terrorists. Punishment may not be a deterrent in these cases but it is the responsibility of the system to eliminate ‘monsters’ disguised as humans in order to make the world suitable enough to live in. Are the courts and the Government impervious to the agony of the victims’ family members? INDU SHANKAR, Varanasi
At a time when political leaders in Tamil Nadu are clamouring for the release of Rajiv Gandhi’s killers, the question is not whether there should be death for the accused but rather about the life and survival of justice. Special Investigation Team’s D.R. Karthikeyan had summed up Rajiv Gandhi’s gruesome killing succinctly, calling it “cunning in conception,
meticulous in planning and ruthless in execution”. It is unfortunate that leaders in Tamil Nadu, instead of moulding public opinion in favour of justice for the nation, are favouring the assassins. KANAK NAMBIAR, Navi Mumbai
Your cover story was a timely eye-opener for the Indians who had forgotten Rajiv Gandhi’s brutal assassination and the role of bureaucracy and politicians who were responsible for the inordinate delay in sentencing the accused. PRABHU G., via email