Ravindra Kaushik (11 April 1952 – November 2001) was a Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW) operative, also named as Black Tiger, who is believed to be one of India's best spies. Kaushik served the R&AW from 1979 to 1983 in Pakistan. He was able to penetrate the Pakistan Army and was recruited as an officer of them.

Early life

Ravindra Kaushik was born in Sri Ganganagar,

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

on 11 April 1952 in a

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (gur ...

family. His father, JM Kaushik, was an Indian Air Force officer; his mother Amla Devi passed away in 2006. He did his graduation from SD Bihani PG College, Sri Ganganagar, earning a BCom and was involved with theatre acting while in college when he was recruited by the R&AW.

Recruitment in Research and Analysis Wing

Kaushik was trained in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

for two years to be an

undercover To go "undercover" (that is, to go on an undercover operation) is to avoid detection by the object of one's observation, and especially to disguise one's own identity (or use an assumed identity) for the purposes of gaining the trust of an ind ...

Operative in Pakistan. He was also trained to live the life of a Muslim and was trained for

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
'' Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising a ...

, he was well versed in Punjabi, which is widely understood in Punjab (India) and Pakistan as well. In 1975, at the age of 23, he was sent to Pakistan as an undercover R&AW operative.

Activities in Pakistan

Kaushik converted to Islam, underwent

circumcision Circumcision is a procedure that removes the foreskin from the human penis. In the most common form of the operation, the foreskin is extended with forceps, then a circumcision device may be placed, after which the foreskin is excised. Top ...

and was given the cover name "Nabi Ahmed Shakir" and entered Pakistan in 1975. After successfully getting admission in

Karachi University The University of Karachi ( sd, ; informally Karachi University, KU, or UoK) is a public research university located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Established in June 1951 by an act of Parliament and as a successor to the University of Sindh ...

, he also completed his

LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

. He joined Pakistan Army as a commissioned officer and was eventually promoted to the rank of major. He married a local girl named Amanat, the daughter of a tailor in one of the army units, and fathered a boy who died in 2012–2013. From 1979 to 1983, Kaushik worked as a Pakistani army officer. As trained at R&AW, he was sending valuable information to

R&AW The Research and Analysis Wing (abbreviated R&AW; hi, ) is the foreign intelligence agency of India. The agency's primary function is gathering foreign intelligence, counter-terrorism, counter-proliferation, advising Indian policymakers, a ...

which was of great help to India. He was given the title of 'Black Tiger' by the Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi.

Death and aftermath

In September 1983, R&AW sent a low-level operative, Inyat Masih, to get in touch with Kaushik. But, Masih was exposed by Joint Counterintelligence Bureau of Pakistan's ISI and blew Kaushik's cover. Kaushik was also captured, tortured for two years at an interrogation center in

Sialkot Sialkot ( ur, ) is a city located in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the capital of Sialkot District and the 13th most populous city in Pakistan. The boundaries of Sialkot are joined with Jammu (the winter capital of Indian administered Jammu and Ka ...

. He was given the death sentence in 1985. His sentence was later commuted to a life term by the

Supreme Court of Pakistan The Supreme Court of Pakistan ( ur, ; ''Adālat-e-Uzma Pākistān'') is the apex court in the judicial hierarchy of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Established in accordance to thePart VIIof the Constitution of Pakistan, it has ultimate a ...

. He was kept in various jails in various cities, including Sialkot, Kot Lakhpat and in

Mianwali Mianwali (Punjabi/ ur, ) is the capital city of Mianwali District in Punjab, Pakistan. The 81st largest city of Pakistan, it is known for its diverse population of, Punjabi and Pashtun ethnicities. History Mianwali District was an agricult ...

jail for 16 years. He managed to secretly send letters to his family in India, which revealed his poor health condition and the trauma faced by him in Pakistani jails. In one of his letters, he wrote: In November 2001, he succumbed to

pulmonary tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, in ...

and heart disease in

Central Jail Mianwali Central Jail Mianwali is an old and historical jail in Mianwali, Punjab, Pakistan located on Rawalpindi road nearly 8 kilometers away from Mianwali city. It is noted for housing a number of prominent prisoners, the most notable of these b ...

in Pakistan. According to Ravindra's family,

Indian government The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

had refused to recognise him and had made no effort to help him. Ravindra's family claimed that the storyline of the famous Bollywood flick "

Ek Tha Tiger ''Ek Tha Tiger'' () is a 2012 Indian Hindi-language espionage action thriller film directed by Kabir Khan and co-written by Khan and Neelesh Misra, from a story by and produced by Aditya Chopra. It is the first installment in the ''Tiger'' ...

" released in the year 2012 was based on the life of Ravindra and asked for credit in the movie titles for Ravindra. But the director Kabir Khan denied their claim. ''

Romeo Akbar Walter ''Romeo Akbar Walter'' (; alluding the Research and Analysis Wing) is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film written and directed by Robbie Grewal. It stars John Abraham, Mouni Roy, Jackie Shroff and Sikandar Kher. The narrative ce ...

'', a 2019 Indian film written and directed by Robbie Grewal is loosely based on his activities in Pakistan,

John Abraham John Abraham (born 17 December 1972) is an Indian actor, film producer, writer and former model working in Hindi films. He has won a National Film Award and received five Filmfare nominations. After modelling for advertisements and companies, ...

plays the role of Ravindra Kaushik in the film.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kaushik, Ravindra Indian expatriates in Pakistan 1952 births 2001 deaths India–Pakistan relations Indian people imprisoned abroad Indian people who died in prison custody Indian spies Pakistan Army officers People of the Research and Analysis Wing Prisoners and detainees of Pakistan Prisoners who died in Pakistani detention Punjabi people University of Karachi alumni Spies who died in prison custody People convicted of espionage in Pakistan Research and Analysis Wing activities in Pakistan Tuberculosis deaths in Pakistan 21st-century deaths from tuberculosis Infectious disease deaths in Punjab, Pakistan Indian prisoners sentenced to death Indian prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Prisoners sentenced to death by Pakistan Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Pakistan Converts to Islam from Hinduism

Early life

Recruitment in Research and Analysis Wing

Activities in Pakistan

Death and aftermath

See also

Further reading

References