India's Disastrous Intervention in Sri Lanka: A Turning Point in the Country's History

Strategic Insights -

India's decision to intervene in the Sri Lankan civil war in 1987 was expected to bring peace and stability to the island nation, but it ultimately led to the deaths of over 8,000 Indian soldiers and the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. The Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) was deployed in July 1987 to maintain law and order in the Tamil north, but it soon found itself embroiled in a brutal conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Key Takeaways:

  • The Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord of July 29, 1987 was expected to bring an end to the civil war, but it only paved the way for the LTTE to continue its fight for independence.
  • The IPKF suffered over 8,000 casualties, including 1,165 Indian soldiers who were killed in action, during its three-year deployment in Sri Lanka.
  • The LTTE's refusal to surrender arms and engage in the political process, despite the terms of the Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord, led to a breakdown in the peace talks and a resumption of hostilities.
  • The IPKF's alleged human rights abuses, including extra-judicial abductions, torture, rape, and killings, further eroded the credibility of the Indian military and the Indian government.
  • The Indian intervention was extremely unpopular among the Sinhala population in Sri Lanka, who saw the IPKF as an occupation force.
  • The V P Singh government that succeeded Rajiv Gandhi in 1989 was short-lived, and India was once again preparing for a general election by 1991, with Rajiv Gandhi keeping a door open for re-entering the Sri Lankan civil war.
  • The assassination of Rajiv Gandhi on May 21, 1991 by an LTTE suicide bomber was a culmination of the country's "Sri Lanka misadventure" that had long been described as "India's Vietnam".

Statistics:

  • 1,165 Indian soldiers were killed in action during the IPKF's deployment in Sri Lanka (between July 1987 and March 1990)
  • Over 8,000 IPKF soldiers were injured during the conflict
  • 319 IPKF soldiers were killed in the brutal combat between the IPKF and the LTTE in October 1987
  • 1,100 rebels were killed in the same period, but the LTTE's main fighting force and leadership had escaped to the jungles of Vanni in the north
  • The LTTE killed 5,000 Sri Lankan soldiers during the same period
  • The Indian government lost over $1 billion in 1987-1990 due to the IPKF's deployment in Sri Lanka

Sources:

  • Roshani M Gunewardene, 'Indo-Sri Lanka Accord: Intervention by Invitation or Forced Intervention' (1991)
  • Samanth Subramanian, The Divided Island: Life, Death, and the Sri Lankan War (2014)
  • Sushant Singh, Mission Overseas: Daring Operations by the Indian Military (2017)