Wijemuni Vijitha Rohana de Silva (born 1965) is a former
Sri Lankan navy sailor and an astrologer. He is noted for his assault on
Indian Prime Minister
The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...
Rajiv Gandhi on 30 July 1987 at
President's House, Colombo
President's House is the official residence and workplace of the President of Sri Lanka, located at Janadhipathi Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Since 1804 it had been the residence of British Governors and Governors-General and was known as the ...
. It was claimed by some as an attempted assassination. He later contested a general election under the
Sihala Urumaya party in 2000.
Early life and naval career
Born in
Boossa
Boossa is a small town on the south coast of Sri Lanka, located in the Galle District of the Southern Province. It is approximately south of Colombo and north of Galle, immediately north of the mouth of the Gin Gaga (Gin River). It is situate ...
, Ratgama in the southern province of Sri Lanka; he studied at Gintota Maha Vidyalaya and passed the
O Level
The O-Level (Ordinary Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education. It was introduced in place of the School Certificate in 1951 as part of an educational reform alongside the more in-depth ...
examination. Thereafter he joined the
Sri Lanka Navy
ta, இலங்கை கடற்படை
, image = Sri Lanka Naval Seal.png
, image_size = 180px
, caption = Emblem of Sri Lanka Navy
, dates =
, c ...
received his weapons training at the
Naval and Maritime Academy and specialized as a radiomen.
[Vijitha Rohana: Courage of his convictions](_blank)
''The Nation''. 2007-07-29. He was stationed at SLNS Elara in
Karainagar,
Jaffna
Jaffna (, ) is the capital city of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka. It is the administrative headquarters of the Jaffna District located on a peninsula of the same name. With a population of 88,138 in 2012, Jaffna is Sri Lanka's 12th mo ...
taking part in the
Vadamarachchi Operation. In July 1987 he was a
Leading Rate and transferred the Colombo and assigned to the
Guard of honour for the visiting Indian Prime Minister, who was in Colombo to sign the
Indo-Sri Lanka Accord
The Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord was an accord signed in Colombo on 29 July 1987, between Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lankan President J. R. Jayewardene. The accord was expected to resolve the Sri Lankan Civil War by enabling t ...
that would result in the deployment of the
Indian Peace Keeping Force.
Assault
Rohana was enraged by the Indian support for the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE; ta, தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள், translit=Tamiḻīḻa viṭutalaip pulikaḷ, si, දෙමළ ඊළාම් විමුක්ති කොටි, t ...
and its direct interference in Sri Lanka with
Operation Poomalai
Operation Poomalai (''Pūmālai'', lit. "Flower Garland"), also known as Eagle Mission 4, was the codename assigned to a mission undertaken by the Indian Air Force for airdropping supplies over the besieged town of Jaffna in Sri Lanka on 4 Ju ...
and forcing the conclusion of the successful
Vadamarachchi Operation before all its objectives were met. These were sentiments felt throughout the country and continues to this day.
The Guard of Honour was commanded by Lieutenant Mendis who invited the Indian Prime Minister to review the guard as per tradition. Rajiv Gandhi was escorted by Lieutenant Mendis along with Sri Lankan Finance Minister
Ronnie de Mel, and Sri Lankan security personnel. Vijitha Rohana swung his ceremonial
Lee–Enfield
The Lee–Enfield or Enfield is a bolt-action, magazine-fed repeating rifle that served as the main firearm of the military forces of the British Empire and Commonwealth during the first half of the 20th century, and was the British Army's sta ...
rifle at the Indian Prime Minister aiming at the back of his neck. Gandhi managed to duck and miss the full brunt of the blow, even though the rifle struck him. Rohana was quickly restrained by Lieutenant Mendis and the Chief Petty Officer of the detachment along with other security personnel and Sri Lankan police.
Court martial
Vijitha Rohana faced a court martial headed by K.R.L. Perera, Group Captain Buddhi Siriwardhen and Colonel
Vijaya Wimalaratne
Major General Vanigamuni Indrajith Vijeyakumar Mendis Wimalaratne, RWP, RSP, VSV, USP, psc, GR ( si, විජය විමලරත්න; 25 August 1940 – 8 August 1992) was a senior Sri Lanka Army officer. One of the most distinguish ...
. He was charged with attempted murder and acting contrary to navy discipline and insulting a state leader.
Prosecuted by Senior State Counsel Captain Raja Fernando, his defence team included
Sarath Wijesinghe,
Susil Premajayantha
Achchige Don Susil Premajayantha (born 10 January 1955) is a Sri Lankan politician, Cabinet Minister and a member of the Parliament of Sri Lanka.
Education
Premajayantha received his primary and secondary education at St. John's College, Nugegoda ...
and
Donald Hewagama. The defence implied that Rohana was not aiming to kill since he could have stabbed the premier with the
bayonet affixed to his
Lee–Enfield
The Lee–Enfield or Enfield is a bolt-action, magazine-fed repeating rifle that served as the main firearm of the military forces of the British Empire and Commonwealth during the first half of the 20th century, and was the British Army's sta ...
rifle at the time. The court martial found him guilty of attempted culpable homicide not amounting to murder and insulting the Indian Prime Minister. He was sentenced to six years in prison, however President
Ranasinghe Premadasa gave him a presidential pardon after two and a half years.
Later life
After his release from prison he gained a degree from the
University of Sri Jayewardenepura
''Vijja Uppattam Setta''
, mottoeng = Among all that arise, knowledge is the greatest
, established =
, undergrad = 14,750
, postgrad = 3560
, administrative_staff = 3950
, cit ...
and started his own business. In 2000 he contested the general election under the
Sihala Urumaya party.
He later became an astrologer and claimed that President
Maithripala Sirisena
Maithripala Yapa Sirisena ( si, පල්ලෙවත්ත ගමරාළලාගේ මෛත්රීපාල යාපා සිරිසේන; ta, பல்லேவத்த கமராளலாகே மைத்திரி ...
would die by 26 January 2017. This was seen as a part of a conspiracy to assassinate the president and he was arrested again.
Further reading
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*
See also
*
List of assassination attempts on prime ministers of India
There have been numerous assassination attempts on List of prime ministers of India, prime ministers of India. The prime minister is the Head of government, executive head of the Government of India, Union Government of India, and is usually the m ...
*
Indo-Sri Lanka Accord
The Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord was an accord signed in Colombo on 29 July 1987, between Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lankan President J. R. Jayewardene. The accord was expected to resolve the Sri Lankan Civil War by enabling t ...
*
Vadamarachchi Operation
*
Operation Poomalai
Operation Poomalai (''Pūmālai'', lit. "Flower Garland"), also known as Eagle Mission 4, was the codename assigned to a mission undertaken by the Indian Air Force for airdropping supplies over the besieged town of Jaffna in Sri Lanka on 4 Ju ...
References
External links
*
Rajiv Gandhi escapes an attempt on his life by a Sri Lankan Naval Cadet Wilderness Films India Ltd.
Interview With Sri Lankan Soldier Who Hit Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi Thanthi TV
Thanthi TV is a 24-hour Tamil news satellite television channel based in Chennai, India. It is owned by Dina Thanthi.
History
NDTV Hindu was launched on 16 May 2009, owned by NDTV (51%) and The Hindu Group (49%). It was started as a Chennai ...
.
The soldier who hit Rajiv Gandhi does not regret his act ABP News.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rohana, Vijitha
1965 births
Living people
Sinhalese politicians
Sri Lanka Navy sailors
People who were court-martialed
Alumni of the University of Sri Jayewardenepura
Sri Lankan assassins
Failed assassination attempts in Sri Lanka
Failed assassins
Assassination of Rajiv Gandhi
Filmed assassinations
Failed assassination attempts in Asia
Assassinations in India