(Courtesy of The Island)

The Island editor’s response in setting the record straight regarding the Indian High Commission’s stubborn rejection that India armed the LTTE, should be applauded. The Indian political hierarchy was indeed involved heavily in arming the Sri Lankan separatist Tamils. RAW ‘s role in acting as ‘the managers’ of the armed terrorists of Sri Lanka is very well established in many a report written on the subject. According to records available India’s interests in the separatist movement commenced in 1970 when the Indian IB agents were replaced by the RAW operatives. After a preliminary survey and obtaining the Indian Government green light the training and arming of separatist terrorists were found to be one of the main activities of the RAW in Sri Lanka around 1983. The advanced training for the selected cadres were given at Chakrata, North of Dehera Dun, India’s top defence academy and in the Ramakrishna Puram in Delhi.

Between 1983 and 1987 the Raw training program for the Sri Lankan separatists included the use of semi and automatic weapons, 84 mm rocket launching, use of heavy weapons, laying mines, bomb explosions and intelligence work. In March 1987 the RAW supplied about 300 AK 47s, light machine guns and rocket launchers. Some of cadres were given training in under water demolition tactics. Further, RAW supplied guns, bazookas, mortars, grenades, RPGs, and Swedish made state of the art, Gustav rifles to TNA in Trincomalee transported by Indian Air Force planes in 1987-88. In addition a number of the Tamil separatist leaders were in the payroll of the RAW. From 1983 to 1987 the RAW trained and supplied armaments to 1200 Tamil Terrorists.

With the close supervision of the RAW a formidable network was established in Tamil Nadu mainly to supply the needs of the terrorists. The explosives were procured in Dharmapuri, manufacturing of arms and ammunition were from Coimbatore and Salem while military clothing was made at Periya. The supply landing point to Tamil Tiger boats was located in Nagapatanam. The recruitment of terrorist cadres was centered in Madurai. According to Dr Rohan Gunaratne LTTE was active in India from 1980s.

In spite of long standing diplomatic relationship Sri Lanka had with India, it has to be said that India was directly responsible for the instability and heavy loss of men and other resources of Sri Lanka due to the armed militancy of the LTTE nourished by India.

Ranjith Soysa

Head of Chancery High Commission of India

Upset on the truth!

Arming Terrorists – II: India responds

First Secretary (Political) & Head of Chancery High Commission of India Gaurav Ahluwalia has issued the following statement in response to our editorial on April 2, 2015;

“I am constrained to write this letter in response to your far-fetched editorial titled Arming Terrorists – II that appeared in your esteemed newspaper on 2 April 2015.

2. The editorial digresses from the main issue of discussion and mischievously draws in India and the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF).

3. The references to India and IPKF in the editorial and remarks thereof are indeed unfortunate and totally uncalled for. These remarks are untenable and we reject them in their entirety.

4. Any rational person who has knowledge of India-Sri Lanka relations would be well aware of the fact the IPKF was deployed at the invitation of Government of Sri Lanka. IPKF was withdrawn when Government of Sri Lanka informed Government of India that IPKF’s services were not required.

5. Nearly 1200 soldiers and officers of IPKF made the supreme sacrifice for the unity and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka.

6. The attempt to pin the blame for the decades of violence in Sri Lanka on India is condemnable and a gross distortion of facts.

7. India and Sri Lanka enjoy friendly relations from time immemorial. They have stood the test of time and have grown stronger in recent times. The high level visits from both sides this year have opened new vistas of cooperation for the future.

8. Such inflammatory and erroneous editorials that are obviously meant to arouse passions serve a narrow and bigoted agenda. I am sure your discerning readers will treat the unfounded and unwarranted allegations against India made in your editorial with the contempt they deserve.

9. I hope you would be kind enough to publish the above points as our right of reply.

Editor’s note:

Our response to the points in Mr. Ahluwalia’s statement is as follows:

1. The Indian High Commission thinks our editorial was far-fetched. It is entitled to its opinion.

2. The editorial never digressed from the main issue to draw India in. After all, its title was Arming terrorists – II. India created and armed Sri Lanka’s terrorists, didn’t it? Can the Indian High Commission deny this fact? Let Mr. Ahluwalia be urged to read one-time Indian Foreign Secretary J. N. Dixit’s book, Makers of India’s Foreign Policy: Raja Ram Mohun Roy to Yashwant Sinha.

3. We stand by our remarks and regret that the crimes the IPKF committed have gone uninvestigated. This is what former Surveyor General of Sri Lanka Dr. T. Somasekaram said in an article, ‘Memorial for IPKF’ in The Island on March 23, 2004:

“I was shocked, saddened and angered when I read the news item on 17 March 2004 that a memorial is to be erected in Colombo for the IPKF soldiers who died in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990. The simple fact of the matter is that a foreign country, with designs of becoming a regional superpower, manoeuvred to send its army here as Peace Keepers but massacred thousands of innocent Tamil civilians, raped the women and plundered valuables (emphasis added). If memorials are to be erected, then it should be for innocent civilians massacred by the IPKF. Let me provide a few samples from my personal knowledge. These represent but the tip of an iceberg. I write as an authentic son of Jaffna, born and bred there, educated at Jaffna Hindu College and the only house my wife and I own is in Jaffna.” He also said, ‘The acronym IPKF will always stand for Indian People Killing Force.’ Need we say more? [The article which names some of the civilians killed by the IPKF is available in The Island archives.]

4. India created conditions for a troop induction here and the IPKF got itself invited. The Sri Lankan security forces had been confined to barracks at India’s behest and the militant groups did not surrender arms in keeping with the Indo-Lanka Peace Accord. The deployment of troops here was no altruistic act on the part of India.

5. If India had really wanted to preserve the unity and territorial integrity of Sri Lanka it shouldn’t have saved Prabhakaran by forcing the JRJ government to abandon Operation Liberation in 1987. The Indian boots were here not to help this country but to help further India’s expansionist agenda and tame the JRJ government which was considered pro-American in the then bipolar word.

6. If India had not created trained, armed and funded terrorist groups including the LTTE there would have been no war. If there had been no war not so many lives would have been lost due to terrorism and counter-terrorism operations.

7. We wish this were true!

8. Here, the Indian High Commission has created a Straw Man and demolished it without addressing the core issue we raised—India was responsible for arming terrorists here. Will the Indian High Commission tell us whether India created, trained, armed and funded terrorist groups responsible for mindless violence which plunged this country into a protracted bloody conflict?

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