Times of India,20 May 2011, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Agency-probing-Rajiv-killing-conspiracy-plods-on/articleshow/8450315.cms
Sonia and Priyanka Gandhi
It is 20 years since Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in Sriperumbudur during an election meeting. And, it is more than two years since the prime accused in the case, LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran, was killed and his outfit annihilated by the Sri Lankan armed forces. But the Multi-Disciplinary Monitoring Agency (MDMA) constituted to probe the conspiracy angle in the case still functions, both in Chennai and Delhi.
“We have sent letters rogatory to more than 25 countries including Germany, Switzerland and France, seeking details about the financial transactions of various persons, including LTTE cadres and sympathisers, alleged to have been involved in the conspiracy. But all these countries refused to furnish any details. Many of our MDMA and CBI officials toured these countries, but returned empty handed with no information. The authorities in these countries just declined to cooperate with our officials,” sources in MDMA told TOI.In September 2009, about a year after Prabhakaran was killed and LTTE leader Selvarasa Pathmanathan or KP was nabbed by the Sri Lankan government, the MDMA despatched a team to question the former chief arms procurer of the LTTE. The team is said to have grilled KP about the LTTE’s global network and the funds flow.
The court accepted the certificate furnished by MDMA, obtained from the Sri Lankan government, confirming the death of Prabakaran, the proclaimed offender in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. “The Supreme Court delivered its verdict in the case in 1999 and the MDMA has no work now,” pointed out an official. But the agency still functions out of the Chennai office of the special investigation team, which initially probed the assassination. Five officials work here and get extra allowance for this posting. A few staff members have also been posted for the TADA court.
MDMA was constituted in 1998 based on the Jain commission report to carry out further investigation of accused involved in the Rajiv assassination, including those outside the country. They have questioned former officials and some politicians, including Janata Party president Subramanian Swamy. They submitted periodical reports in sealed covers to the designated TADA court in Chennai. But little has been achieved with all this exercise. However, some officers insist that MDMA’s task of probing the possible involvement of other extremist outfits, both in India and abroad, was yet to be completed.
