Former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was killed by a suicide bomber tied to the LTTE at a campaign rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, on 21 May 1991, along with 14 other people. Twenty-six people were convicted at trial; the Supreme Court later reduced death sentences to four, and in 2022 the Supreme Court ordered the release of the last six convicts still imprisoned.
On 21 May 1991, Rajiv Gandhi, former Prime Minister of India, was assassinated in a suicide bombing at an election campaign rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu. He was campaigning for the Indian National Congress ahead of the 1991 Indian general election. At approximately 10:10 pm, Gandhi arrived at the rally and began walking toward the dais while being garlanded by well-wishers and party workers. At 10:20 pm, Kalaivani Rajaratnam — a 22-year-old member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) known by the assumed names Thenmozhi Rajaratnam and Dhanu — bent to touch his feet and detonated an RDX explosive belt concealed beneath her clothing. The blast killed Gandhi, Rajaratnam, and at least 14 others, and injured 43 bystanders, bringing total casualties to 59. Among those killed were several police officers, Congress party workers, a ten-year-old girl, and a photographer, Haribabu, who was later identified as a co-conspirator; his camera and film, capturing the attack, were recovered intact.
The Indian government transferred the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) the day after the assassination. A special investigation team led by D. R. Karthikeyan concluded that the LTTE was responsible, a finding upheld by the Supreme Court of India. Investigators and later court findings linked the motive to Gandhi's earlier deployment of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to Sri Lanka and his stated intention, made in an August 1990 interview, to redeploy the IPKF against the LTTE if re-elected.
A separate inquiry, the Justice J. S. Verma Commission, examined security lapses and concluded in its June 1992 report that security arrangements had been adequate in principle but were disrupted by local Congress leaders. The Narasimha Rao government initially rejected the findings before accepting them, though no recommendations were acted upon. A further inquiry, the Jain Commission, named additional individuals and entities as suspected of involvement, including allegations against the cleric Chandraswami and separately against former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi; the leak of this report in November 1998 contributed to the Congress party withdrawing support from the United Front government of I. K. Gujral.
The case was tried under the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities Act (TADA). On 28 January 1998, a designated TADA court in Chennai sentenced all 26 accused to death, a verdict criticized by human rights groups over closed-door proceedings and non-disclosure of witness identities. On appeal, the Supreme Court on 11 May 1999 confirmed death sentences for only four of the convicts, including S. Nalini Sriharan, commuting the rest to prison terms. Nalini's death sentence was later commuted to life imprisonment following a clemency petition from Sonia Gandhi. Three other convicts — V. Sriharan alias Murugan, T. Suthendraraja alias Santhan, and A. G. Perarivalan — had clemency pleas rejected in 2011, and executions scheduled for September 2011 were stayed by the Madras High Court. On 11 November 2022, the Supreme Court of India ordered the release of six remaining convicts — V. Sriharan, S. Nalini Sriharan, T. Suthendraraja, Robert Pious, Jayakumar, and Ravichandran — following a remission recommendation from the Tamil Nadu government in March 2016. A. G. Perarivalan had previously been released.
Rajiv Gandhi, Kalaivani Rajaratnam, Rajaguru, Chandra, Pradeep K. Gupta, Ravichandran (Black Cat commando), Dharman, Darryl Jude Peters, Haribabu, Munuswamy, Murugan, Saroja Devi, Kokilavani, Ethiraju, Santhani Begum, Latha Kannan, K. S. Mohammed Iqbal, Edward Joseph
Date
1991
Location
Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, India
Case status
solved
Case timeline
1990-08
Rajiv Gandhi gives an interview to Sunday magazine stating he would redeploy the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) against the LTTE if he returned to power.
1991-03-05
An LTTE delegation reportedly meets Rajiv Gandhi, according to Subramanian Swamy's account.
1991-05-21
Rajiv Gandhi is killed in a suicide bombing at a campaign rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, along with 14 others; the bomber, Kalaivani Rajaratnam, also dies.
1991-05-22
The Chandra Shekhar government hands the assassination investigation to the CBI.
1991-05-24
A state funeral is held for Rajiv Gandhi in New Delhi; he is cremated near the Yamuna river.
1991-06-14
S. Nalini Sriharan is arrested.
1992-06
The Justice J. S. Verma Commission submits its final report on security lapses surrounding the assassination.
1998-01-28
A designated TADA court in Chennai sentences all 26 accused to death.
1998-11
The Jain Commission's interim report is leaked, naming M. Karunanidhi; Congress subsequently withdraws support for the I. K. Gujral government.
1999-05-11
The Supreme Court of India confirms death sentences for only four of the convicts, commuting the others to prison terms.
2000
Sonia Gandhi petitions for clemency for Nalini Sriharan; her death sentence is commuted to life imprisonment.
2010-05
Nalini's 'Class A' convict privilege is withdrawn after a mobile phone is allegedly recovered from her cell.
2011-08
The President of India rejects clemency pleas for Murugan, Santhan, and Perarivalan.
2011-09-09
Executions of three convicts are scheduled but stayed for eight weeks by the Madras High Court.
2016-03
The Tamil Nadu government recommends remission for the convicts.
2022-11-11
The Supreme Court of India orders the release of six convicts in the case.
Best coverage
Titles and descriptions are the creators’ own and may not reflect current legal status; see the dossier above for sourced case facts.
VIDEO
Creator
The Sri Lankan war that killed Rajiv Gandhi: Story of India, Sri Lanka and IPKF | The Hindu Explains
People
Jayakumar
CONVICTED
Brother-in-law of Robert Pious, convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.
A. G. Perarivalan
CONVICTED
Indian citizen convicted for supplying a 9-volt battery used in the explosive device; sentenced to life imprisonment.
Rajiv Gandhi
VICTIM
Former Prime Minister of India, killed in the suicide bombing.
Kalaivani Rajaratnam
VICTIM
LTTE suicide bomber (also known as Thenmozhi Rajaratnam or Dhanu) who died in the explosion she detonated; identified as the perpetrator.
Ravichandran (convicted co-conspirator)
CONVICTED
Sri Lankan national convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.
Rajaguru
VICTIM
Police inspector killed in the blast.
S. Nalini Sriharan
CONVICTED
Convicted and originally sentenced to death; sentence commuted to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.
Chandra
VICTIM
Police constable killed in the blast.
Pradeep K. Gupta
VICTIM
Personal security officer of Rajiv Gandhi, killed in the blast.
Ravichandran (Black Cat commando)
VICTIM
Black Cat commando killed in the blast (distinct from the convicted co-conspirator of the same name).
T. Suthendraraja (Santhan)
CONVICTED
Sri Lankan national convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.
Dharman
VICTIM
Police constable killed in the blast.
Darryl Jude Peters
VICTIM
Attendee and observer killed in the blast.
Haribabu
VICTIM
Local photographer who died in the blast; identified as a conspirator whose camera and film were recovered intact.
V. Sriharan (Murugan)
CONVICTED
LTTE operative convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; among the six convicts whose release was ordered by the Supreme Court in November 2022.
D. R. Karthikeyan
LAW ENFORCEMENT
Headed the CBI's Special Investigation Team that investigated the assassination.
Munuswamy
VICTIM
Former member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Council killed in the blast.
Murugan
VICTIM
Police constable killed in the blast.
Saroja Devi
VICTIM
Seventeen-year-old college student killed in the blast.
Kokilavani
VICTIM
Ten-year-old daughter of Latha Kannan, killed in the blast after singing a poem to Gandhi.
Robert Pious
CONVICTED
Sri Lankan national convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.
Ethiraju
VICTIM
Killed in the blast.
Santhani Begum
VICTIM
Mahila Congress leader killed in the blast.
Latha Kannan
VICTIM
Mahila Congress worker killed in the blast.
K. S. Mohammed Iqbal
VICTIM
Police superintendent killed in the blast.
Edward Joseph
VICTIM
Police inspector killed in the blast.
Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.
Credit: This Image was created by User:PlaneMad. If you are using the image under the creative commons share alike license please credit the photo CC-by-sa PlaneMad/Wikimedia and include a link to this page. No explicit permission is needed from me, but id appreciate an email if my work has been of help to you. If you dont want to release your work under a creative commons license, please mail me at arun.planemad@gmail.com or catch me at my Website to negotiate a custom license as per your needs. · CC BY-SA 2.5 · Source
archival location
Rajiv Gandhi Memorial bombsite
Credit: This Image was created by User:PlaneMad. If you are using the image under the creative commons share alike license please credit the photo CC-by-sa PlaneMad/Wikimedia and include a link to this page. No explicit permission is needed from me, but id appreciate an email if my work has been of help to you. If you dont want to release your work under a creative commons license, please mail me at arun.planemad@gmail.com or catch me at my Website to negotiate a custom license as per your needs. · CC BY-SA 2.5 · Source
archival location
Rajiv Gandhi memorial entrance, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. 2010
Former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was killed by a suicide bomber tied to the LTTE at a campaign rally in Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, on 21 May 1991, along with 14 other people. Twenty-six people were convicted at trial; the Supreme Court later reduced death sentences to four, and in 2022 the Supreme Court ordered the release of the last six convicts still imprisoned.
Where did the crime happen?
Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, India.
Who was convicted?
Jayakumar (Brother-in-law of Robert Pious, convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.), A. G. Perarivalan (Indian citizen convicted for supplying a 9-volt battery used in the explosive device; sentenced to life imprisonment.), Ravichandran (convicted co-conspirator) (Sri Lankan national convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.), S. Nalini Sriharan (Convicted and originally sentenced to death; sentence commuted to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.), T. Suthendraraja (Santhan) (Sri Lankan national convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.), V. Sriharan (Murugan) (LTTE operative convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; among the six convicts whose release was ordered by the Supreme Court in November 2022.), and Robert Pious (Sri Lankan national convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment; released by Supreme Court order in November 2022.).
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