[indistinct chatter]
[telephone ringing]
Good evening, the Indian High Commissioner's office.
How may I help you?
[Man 1] 'Rajiv Gandhi is alive?'
Excuse me?
[Man 1] 'Rajiv Gandhi is alive?'
What is your name, sir?
And where are you calling from?
[telephone hang-up]
Sir? Hello?
[telephone disconnected]
♪ God is his master, he is the employee, the farmer.. ♪
♪ The farmer...♪
♪ God is his master, he is the employee, the farmer ♪
♪ The farmer ♪
♪ He has set his sight on the path of progress... ♪
[Man 2] Will you have this?
- Do you want this? - Yes.
Brother, give me one, please.
Darling, do you like being here?
Yes.
Don't be angry at your dad...
...for making you stand here for four hours.
After Rajiv Gandhi starts speaking, we can go back.
Who is Rajiv Gandhi?
He is the former Prime Minister of India!
And he is going to be our future Prime Minister after this.
Here comes our leader. Please welcome Mr. Rajiv Gandhi!
Darling, the leader is here!
[crowd cheering]
♪ Rajiv Gandhi... Our Leader ♪
[crowd cheering]
- Hello, sir. - Hello.
This is my daughter, Kokila...
She's composed a poem for you.
Hey, that's enough.
Leader!
[explosion]
[ambulance siren wailing]
[man wailing]
[woman screaming]
[Title Montage]
Did you inform Sonia ji?
I have informed Rajiv ji's secretary, sir.
[exhales]
Sir, madam would like to meet you.
[telephone ringing]
Hello.
Hello. A deeply saddening news.
Former Prime Minister of India...
...Mr. Rajiv Gandhi, has been assassinated.
[News reporter] 'Mr. Rajiv Gandhi'...
...'was at Sriperumbuthur, Tamil Nadu, to deliver'...
...'an election campaign speech tonight.'
According to police officials, the cause of this assassination...
...is reported to be a bomb explosion.
'Prime Minister Mr. Chandra Shekhar'...
...'has been informed of this incident in Delhi.'
'He has called for an emergency meeting.'
First Sanjay then Indira...
Now Rajiv... My God!
Gandhi family is really unlucky.
[News in different languages]
[car pulling up]
Excuse me.
One minute please!
This blast site is now under the Forensic department.
Whatever you have collected till now, you can submit to us.
India mourned the death of yet another Patriot...
...of a young leader whose vision...
...had stirred the country's imagination.
Whose legacy symbolised the aspirations...
...of the young and the women particularly.
Rajiv Gandhi constantly challenged convention, cliches and dogma.
His legacy encompassed pride in the Motherland.
An instinctive pledge to its unity and integrity...
...to its secular fabric.
And above all, to the welfare of its people.
[Rajiv Gandhi voice over] I'm young and I too have a dream.
I dream of an India, strong, independent, self-reliant...
...and in the forefront, and the front line...
...of the nations of the world in the service of mankind.
Despite the unified efforts of security agencies...
...they failed to protect a former Prime Minister.
Sir, despite being consistently offered high-security...
...Rajiv jideclined to avail them.
That's why he didn't have any SPG cover with him tonight.
These are just excuses.
How about your intelligence?
Sir, we didn't have any specific intel regarding Rajiv ji's life.
But I am confident that the LTTE is involved in this.
- LTTE? - Yes, sir.
What is your thought?
Sir, I agree with Mr. Narayanan.
LTTE's spokesperson from California...
...has also claimed responsibility for this blast.
- How about you, Bajpai? - Sir, on the contrary...
...our sources indicate that he is a low-level operative.
His statement cannot be considered as serious.
Sir, RAW believes that there is no foreign involvement in this.
[Bajpai] 'I think this is internal sabotage.'
Elections are on the horizon, and that's why...
Are you insinuating that either the opposition or someone...
...from within the Congress party is involved in this?
For sure, it is not the Sikh militants.
It has been several years since the assassination of Indira Gandhi.
We can know that only after the investigations.
But it is certain that the LTTE cannot be behind this.
Because if it were the LTTE, they would be more overt.
[Bajpai] 'They have a modus operandi, sir.'
In Europe, their spokespersons, Kittu and Anton Rajah...
...have sent messages to our embassies...
...'expressing regret over this incident.'
And that the LTTE has no connection to this incident.
This event is a substantial blemish on our entire system.
But in the end, the responsibility rests solely on me.
- Vijay. - Yes, sir.
Assemble a special team immediately...
...'and ensure that the team remains free'...
...from any form of politics or pressure.
Okay, sir.
- Good to see you, Kaarthi. - Same here, sir.
I wish the circumstances would have been better.
Very tragic, sir.
We are forming a Special Investigation Team.
And I have suggested your name to the Prime Minister...
...to be the team leader.
Kaarthi, all eyes will be on the SIT.
Especially, on the team leader.
I understand, sir.
There will be considerable political pressure and scrutiny.
Not only from the government and Congress...
...but also from the public and media.
If the case is cracked quickly, everyone will take credit.
But if not, they will blame the team leader. I get it, sir.
Right now, this is the most stressful job in the country.
Do you really want it?
It will be an honour, sir.
I've already informed the Prime Minister...
...that you've accepted the responsibility.
Thank you, sir.
Sir, I have a condition.
Hmm.
I would like to choose my own team.
Sir, please come in, sir.
It's a State Government building, sir.
Sorry, it is a bit old.
But this is the best I could find on such short notice.
We will manage.
But why is this place vacant?
Anyone who used this building in the past hasn't found success, sir.
Locals consider this building as bad luck.
Oh...
The task for which we've come here doesn't leave any room for luck.
Get the building ready quickly, my team will be here soon. Okay?
Okay, sir.
Thank you.
The difficult is possible.
The impossible will take a little longer.
[Kaarthikeyan] 'DIG Amod Kanth, you know him well, sir.'
- [Vijay Karan] 'Of course.' - And he hates his desk job, sir.
This case would be a perfect opportunity...
...for him to return to the field.
Amod has previous experience in solving...
...the case of Mrs. Gandhi's assassination.
This is also a politically charged case.
He will be an asset, sir.
[Kaarthikeyan] 'DIG Raju is unique, sir.'
'Because of his experience in dealing'...
...'with militants in Jammu and Kashmir.'
When it comes to understanding how terrorist organisations operate...
...organise, and run the finances, Raju is the best.
'DSP Ragothaman, sir.'
'Soft spoken, meticulously organised...'
...'and relentlessly persistent.'
He is our best interrogator.
I too would like to suggest a name.
Of course, sir.
[Vijay Karan] 'SP Amit Verma.'
'He dealt with General Vaidya's assassination case...
...'and successfully apprehended Khalistani terrorist, Jindah.'
'And the most important reason is, He is a Tamil Nadu cadre IPS.'
'He can speak in Tamil.'
Gentlemen, this is an extraordinary assignment.
We all belong to different ranks.
Because we'll need hierarchy in decision making.
But I want us all to work together equally in this investigation.
- Hmm? - Yes.
- Let's work together as equals. - Yes, sir.
Yes, sir.
If we look at it, this case may seem similar...
...to the assassinations of Mahatma Gandhi...
...and Indira Gandhi, but it's not.
Because until now, no individual or organisation...
...has come forward to claim responsibility.
We won't let this turn into a conspiracy...
...like the Kennedy assassination...
'where numerous conspiracies have been circulating for years.'
We will surely apprehend these assassins.
[All] 'Yes, sir.'
[ambient noise]
[bus announcement]
[tense music]
The press has only covered all the gory details.
Amin, do we have all the evidences...
...recovered from the crime scene?
[Amin] 'We have informed all the stations personally.'
'It will take some time, sir.'
It looks like a camera.
Yes, sir.
Is there any camera in the evidence we've gathered?
We checked, but there was no camera.
Between the time the photo was clicked...
...and we reached the scene...
...somebody must have taken it.
[motorbike halts]
There's just no way in.
But Anna insisted that we come back with the camera.
We are unnecessarily panicking so much.
How can a camera survive a bomb blast?
But what if it did?
Listen to me.
Luck is with us at this time.
We still have work to do. Nothing will happen to us.
Understood?
[engine starting]
[Dr. Chandra] 'Excuse me.'
Amin, remember, we are searching for this girl...
...and this man who is around 25 years old.
Yes, sir.
Sir.
[suspenseful music]
- Inspector, one minute please! - Yes, sir.
The doctor informed me that you have identified the dead bodies.
Who is that?
Her name is Kokila, sir.
And him?
His name is Haribabu, sir.
We have notified his family. He is a photographer.
Where are the items found with the dead bodies?
This way, sir.
No camera, sir.
Did you find any cameras?
No, sir.
Bloody hell! Where is the camera then?
Mr. Gandhi's body was found lying here.
I was with him last night.
I was about 30 feet behind the blast site.
What all happened? Walk us through the evening.
As far we know...
...people start arriving at the venue from 2 p.m.
Hmm.
By 7 p.m., the place is packed.
[Ganesh singing]
[Inspector] 'Ganesh from the Shankar Ganesh music team had arrived.'
'He began performing on stage.'
Mr. Gandhi enters the venue at 10 p.m. from there.
[police jeeps wailing]
'Mr. Gandhi descended from his car'...
...'and started walking towards the stage.'
Along the way, he paused to shake hands with his supporters.
When he reached here, there were some VIPs.
'He started talking to them'...
...and it was at this point that the bomb blast occurred.
I came running towards him from there.
But it was too late by then.
I fail to understand...
...that despite such a significant police presence...
...how the bomb reached Mr. Gandhi.
The bomb was taken to Mr. Gandhi with precision for maximum success.
When I examined Mr. Gandhi's body...
...I saw that his body was intact.
Only his face was missing.
[Amin] 'Right, sir.'
Fragments of his facial bones were found several hundred meters away.
It means the blast hit his face with full force.
But with such precision, how did the bomber...
...direct the bomb towards his face?
And if he did, how did he escape from there?
So you mean to say...
Precisely, it's a suicide bomber.
As per your instruction, we have arranged all the body parts.
Have a look.
Suicide bomber.
[Sanskrit slokas playing]
[people praying]
[tense music]
I had a feeling that the suicide bomber was a man.
I was wrong.
Now, I am understanding that it makes...
...perfect sense to have a woman suicide bomber.
Because the police are less suspicious of women, right?
When we went to examine the suicide bomber's body...
...'we observed that the central part'...
...'which we call the torso, was missing'...
...because it was destroyed in the blast.
'Therefore, the suicide bomber'...
...was wearing some kind of vest or belt.
I am 100 percent sure...
...that whatever explosives were loaded in it...
...they were placed behind or on the back of the bomber so that...
...when Mr. Gandhi bent forward, they could cause maximum damage.
You are a genius, sir.
In order to prove this theory, we need to find...
...the suicide bomber's vest or belt.
'Also her clothing.'
'We could find some chemical residues or powder burns on it.'
'And wires'...
...'which would have been attached to the clothing.'
Sir, IG Raghavan has sent me.
This Chinon camera is from the blast site.
- I will leave, sir. - Thank you.
[Amin] 'Sir.'
Sir, luck is on our side.
- It is the same camera! - Yes, sir.
- Go and develop the roll. - Sure, sir.
[song playing on TV]
Ragothaman, this is it?
Yes, sir. We have nothing after the blast.
You got this cassette from Doordarshan, right?
Yes, sir.
The Congress party would also have video recordings...
...of this event for their publicity.
Get that immediately.
Sure, will do.
Sir, are we agreeing that LTTE orchestrated this blast?
Amit, it's too early to jump to conclusions, right?
Sir, it's clear that LTTE was behind this blast.
Only they had a clear motive and they hated Rajiv Gandhi.
Since the time Rajiv Gandhi sent the IPKF to Sri Lanka...
...they have been wanting to kill him.
And what about political assassinations?
That is their exact modus operandi.
Taking credit for their success is also part of their modus operandi.
Why haven't they claimed it yet?
Because they know blowing up a minor general or an arm depot...
...is vastly different from attempting to assassinate...
...the Prime Minister.
Especially, the Prime Minister of a large country like India.
If India can send one lakh soldiers for IPKF...
...then imagine what actions...
...it might take after such an assassination.
It can do a full scale invasion on Sri Lanka.
And LTTE will be finished forever.
That's why Prabhakaran and his army are still silent.
I guess you are right...
Rajiv Gandhi's team was in touch...
...with several important figures of the LTTE.
He assured them that he would address the issue of Sri Lanka.
But he had a condition that the LTTE should lay down their weapons.
However, Prabhakaran never agreed to this condition.
But, Mr. Gandhi was adamant.
And he was on the verge of becoming the Prime Minister again.
That's why it became necessary to eliminate him.
[tense music]
Gentlemen, this is a great breakthrough.
[Amod] 'Yes, sir.'
A true stroke of luck.
Yes.
We have all the pictures from that evening...
...leading up to the blast, it's something.
Sir, according to Madras police, these photos...
...were taken by a photographer called Haribabu.
He was a freelancer, but there is something interesting, sir.
When the Madras police contacted...
...all the newspapers in the city, it was revealed...
...that no newspaper had hired Haribabu to cover this event.
The question is, who hired him?
- Oh, really? - Yes, sir.
Has anyone been identified among them?
Sir, he is Ganesh.
Shankar Ganesh, he is from the musician band.
[Ragothaman] 'They are very popular in Tamil Nadu.'
He was performing there in the event.
Anybody else?
I spoke to the Tamil Nadu police.
In this photograph, the lady wearing a green sari...
...is Lata Kanan. She is a congress worker.
And the girl beside her is Kokila. She is Lata Kanan's daughter.
It seems she was going to recite a poem for Mr. Gandhi.
In this photograph, Kokila has her back towards the camera.
She is greeting Mr. Gandhi.
Sadly, both Lata and Kokila were killed in the blast.
The Tamil Nadu Police have cleared both of them as innocent victims.
Sir, all the police officers who were providing...
...security to Mr. Gandhi were killed in the blast.
But SI Anusuya is hospitalised and is in a critical condition.
The hospital will inform us once she regains consciousness.
It's possible she saw something. She might have seen the assassins.
[door knocks]
Please sit.
Gentlemen, meet SI Durai.
He is our local expert on the LTTE.
As you know about the Tamil Nadu Q branch...
...which specialises in tracking terrorists.
Durai works very closely with them.
- Hello. - Hi.
Sir, you were saying, "Don't jump to conclusions."
I'm still saying the same, Amit.
We are still gathering the facts, right?
Let's assume that the LTTE is responsible for this blast.
Durai, what is the ground reality about LTTE in Madras?
Unfortunately, not very encouraging, sir.
Madras and the rest of Tamil Nadu have numerous LTTE sympathisers.
The majority has been brainwashed through propaganda material.
While others genuinely believe in all this...
...for a separate Tamil state in Sri Lanka.
- Durai. - Yes, sir.
Do you think those who orchestrated the blast...
...are still in Madras or Tamil Nadu?
No chance, sir.
If it's the LTTE, they must have escaped by now.
Our coastline is extensive, and their boats travel all the time.
Everyone knows what's happening, but no one does anything.
Amit, you know what the situation is.
Our foreign policy with the neighbouring countries...
...is always entangled in complicated diplomacy.
Borders are sealed only when something significant...
...happens, be it big or wrong.
Sir, let's not waste more time.
Let's picked up Sri Lankan Tamils and interrogate them.
- Yes, but... - [Raju] 'Amod'...
I don't think this a good idea right now.
Sir, it will be challenging. Their population is significant here.
[Durai] 'They are thousands of them.'
But we have to start somewhere.
But it will hurt local sentiments. Their issue is different.
Sir, the main problem is to identify...
...who is Indian Tamil and who is Sri Lankan Tamil.
It won't be evident from physical appearance.
'We can understand this only when they speak to us.'
Their Tamil accent is different from ours.
'But there is a bigger problem.'
The majority of Sri Lankan Tamils living here...
...have been officially granted refugee status.
And the LTTE operatives are using this status as cover.
If we catch a member of the LTTE...
...he will also claim to be an innocent refugee.
That's why they operate fearlessly here.
It means distinguishing between...
...a refugee and a member of the LTTE is impossible.
[temple bells ringing]
- Give her some. - Subha, here you go.
- Would you like some more? - No, thank you.
HEADLINES: PROBE INTO MR. RAJIV GANDHI ASSASSINATION CASE
Greetings, this morning the renowned newspaper "Bharat News"...
...from Tamil Nadu published a photo on its front page.
'This news has surprised people across the country'...
...'about how a newspaper got such significant information'...
...'before the police and CBI.'
- Raju, have you seen this? - Yes, sir.
How did this photo leak?
Sir, I don't know.
All we know is that we have a copy of this photo, and another copy...
- ...is in the Madras CID office. - Exactly.
I have sent Durai to the Madras CID office...
...to find out how this leak happened.
He'll be here any moment.
Sir, I spoke to Madras CID.
Actually, they are also upset. They didn't leak the photo.
But, sir, they had sent Haribabu's camera roll...
...to the Forensic department to develop it.
Who is the forensic in charge?
Professor Chandra Sekharan, sir.
- Call him immediately. - [Durai] 'Yes, sir.'
Why?
Sir, because I didn't want to waste time...
...in catching the culprits.
What does that even mean?
I have identified the bomber.
How?
When the DNA analysis will be done...
...I'm sure it will be proved...
...that the skull fragments were of a woman.
And she is the bomber.
Sir, please take a look at what we've discovered.
[Dr. Chandra] 'She was wearing a denim vest'...
...'which carried RDX.'
This will be proved by the chemical analysis.
And those wires were connected to a trigger mechanism.
[Dr. Chandra] 'I found cloth fibre at the ends of the wires'...
...'that were green and orange in colour.'
'That is definitely from the bomber's dress.'
'Then we searched the clothes we found on the blast site.'
Sir, we found this from the hospital items.
You see this orange dress with green veil.
Look at this photo. What is this woman wearing?
- Green and orange. - [Dr. Chandra] 'Yes, sir.'
Good work, Professor.
Thank you so much, sir.
But you've added one more thing to it.
You've compromised our entire investigation.
That's correct.
Do you realise what you've done? You've alerted all those culprits.
We've just lost a significant advantage.
Exactly.
Now that they know we've identified them, it's enough...
...for them to go underground or disappear.
Sir, I genuinely thought it would speed up the investigation.
No, that's not true.
If that had been the objective...
...you would've come to us first instead of going to the press.
I'm... I'm sorry, sir.
Now, tell me why this person...
...was cropped out of this photo?
To focus on the bomber.
Why involve this innocent man? That's why he was cropped out.
Anything else, sir?
No, that will be all. Thank you.
Sir, now it's confirmed that this is the work of the LTTE, right?
Let's just hope that we catch them before they go underground.
[tense music]
[door knocking]
SI Anusuya?
- Don't do that. Go back. - Let her come forward.
Both of us have come from the SIT.
[Amod] 'I apologize for disturbing you'...
...but we need to ask you some questions.
I am going to show you some photos from that day.
Let us know if they remind you of anything.
'Do you recognize anyone here?'
These four...
...were standing together.
There was also a photographer.
They all knew each other well.
'I remember it clearly.'
'This girl in the orange dress'...
...'asked my permission to enter in.'
'I asked her if she had a pass'...
...'but she didn't have one.'
When I asked her to leave, the photographer stepped in.
'She said she came from Coimbatore'...
...to garland Rajiv Gandhi.
But I didn't let them in.
Sir, did Rajiv Gandhi survive?
Sir...
Is the girl in orange responsible?
I should have stopped them.
[Anusuya sobbing]
I didn't let them in.
Rajiv Gandhi himself...
...asked me to let her garland him.
He was a very good person.
'It was because of me, sir.'
You did your duty well.
'Thank you.'
[airplane takes off]
We believe she is the bomber.
We shall check our files, Mr. Kaarthikeyan.
We have a lot of information available on the LTTE...
...but very little information available on the Black Tigers.
As you know, Black Tiger is the commando squad for the LTTE...
- Yes, I know. - ...who carry out such...
...suicide bombings.
What about this man? Do you recognize him?
No, sir.
We have been hearing of a shadowy LTTE operative…
...who has been in Madras for sometime.
He has been closely trusted by Prabhakaran.
He goes by the name of Jack.
- Could it be him? - We are not sure.
No one knows what he looks like.
He is practically a ghost.
[tense music]