New Delhi: No name plate. No residence number. That's the modest Golf Links apartment of Congress Party leader Rajinder Kumar Dhawan, popularly known as R.K. Dhawan, who recently ceased to be a member of the Rajya Sabha.
A die-hard loyalist of the Gandhi family and former personal secretary and confidant of Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, Dhawan was then known to have attained unparalleled power and influence, unheard of in the history of Indian politics.
Witness to Indira Gandhi's assassination in 1984, he was accused of being her murderer.
In his first in-depth interview, after having suffered silently for more than two decades, Dhawan speaks to Gulf News on how his loyalty towards his boss earned him more foes than friends.
GULF NEWS: Regarding Warren Anderson (former chairman of the American parent company Union Carbide Corp responsible for the 1884 Bhopal gas tragedy) getting away from India, you recently said that Arjun Singh (then Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister) should clarify. There's still no comment from him.
R.K. DHAWAN: What I said was that Anderson came to Delhi by the state government plane. According to the rules, no plane of the state government can fly without the permission of the chief minister. So, Arjun Singh has to say why and under whose instructions he allowed the aircraft to be used.
How are you so sure that no call was made from the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to the Chief Minister to free Anderson? The call could have been put through when you were not around?
It was said in context that there was pressure on Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and someone from America must have called to free Anderson. But since I used to be present in the PMO from 8am till late in the night and all calls were routed through me, I can vouch that neither any call came in for the PM from the US, nor any call came from Arjun Singh. And no call was made to America or to Arjun Singh from the PMO.
You mean the decision to free Anderson was taken by Arjun Singh on his own?
That's what everyone is saying. So he should come out and clarify.
Why is Sonia Gandhi quiet on the issue? As Congress Party President she could ask Singh to come clean on the issue?
Sonia was not in the picture at that time. As of now, it is for Singh to come out with the truth. She cannot force him to talk.
You have seen times from Indira Gandhi to Sonia Gandhi. How would you define R K Dhawan then and now?
I really cannot define myself because times then and now have been absolutely different. When you want to equate the situations, the circumstances should be the same. But at that time the political atmosphere, the situations and circumstances were all different. There was no violence as we see these days. And the leaders were different. But yes, as far as Sonia is concerned, her thinking is similar to Mrs Gandhi. Their ideologies are the same.
Several years later, people still talk about how you became the second most powerful person in India during Indira Gandhi's regime.
I was not and never considered myself powerful. It was all a creation of my detractors. I served Mrs Gandhi to the best of my ability 365 days of the year from 1962 and was with her till her last breath in 1984. I've been with the family for 48 years.
If I were powerful, my family or I would have gained financially. But no one in my family owns a petrol pump or a gas agency. Rather, after Mrs Gandhi's defeat in the 1977 elections, I had to suffer the atrocities committed on me by the Janata Party government. My father, brother and I were sent to prison because they wanted me to depose against Mrs Gandhi. But I didn't.
I faced the Shah Commission enquiry for a month. Later, Central Board of Investigation and income tax raids were conducted at our premises only because I was loyal and committed to Mrs Gandhi.
It's said that as her personal secretary you'd even make ministers wait, saying Madam was busy. Did anyone take revenge on you later?
No, it's all rubbish that I made ministers wait. But yes, I knew who was loyal to Mrs Gandhi and I was friendly with them. And those who were not, I exposed them by telling her. There were times when people would instigate her against me saying I was close to so-and-so. One day I told her, ‘Madam, if the entire country comes to you and asks you to remove me, but you don't want to, they will not be able to do anything. But if you remove me at their behest, they will succeed. My existence depends upon your will.'
You had once said, ‘My fault is that I have to pay a heavy price always because I am clear in my heart and say what is right or wrong without bothering about the repercussions.' Could you cite instances?
The one thing Mrs Gandhi made very clear to me was that I should be frank and straightforward with her. She had said, ‘Don't hide anything from me, even if it is about my family.' So whatever it was I would give her factual feedback whether she liked it or not. At times, I would inform her about people around her and their misdeeds.
When Indira Gandhi was assassinated, the needle of suspicion was pointed at you that the duties of the Sikh guards were changed, etc. How did you cope with the accusations?
I would just sit and prepare replies for the Justice C.K. Thakkar Commission of Inquiry set up to probe Mrs Gandhi's assassination. They would send me the list of questions in the evening and give me barely a day or two to respond. I had no secretarial assistance and spent many months continuing like that. But since my conscience was clear, I never worried. I had absolutely no clue (about the conspiracy to murder her), but if I had an inkling, I would have told Mrs Gandhi about it.
What suddenly changed for you after her death?
Rajiv Gandhi had come to power and the Commission was making inquiries whether I had a hand in Mrs Gandhi's assassination. Imagine I had served her like I would serve my mother or rather I did more than what I could do for my own mother. For five years I faced miseries and surveillance by investigating agencies.
Which other issues went against you?
I had absolutely no hand in the appointment of Giani Zail Singh as President of India. It was entirely Mrs Gandhi's wish, but it was attributed to me that I pushed his name. And the investigating officers were after my blood. One charge levelled against me was that I was close to the President and to the Sikhs.
Was the Thakkar Commission ever able to see things from your point of view?
The Commission was appointed in mid of November, 1984. But even before the judge could start looking into the case papers, he had formed an opinion that I was involved and had come to the conclusion that I was responsible for Mrs Gandhi's murder.
According to the rules, under Section 8 B of the Commission's Inquiry Act, a notice has to be sent to the person to be examined. But no such thing was done in my case.
Factbox: A lifetime of high-profile achievement
- R.K. Dhawan was born on July 16, 1937 to mother Ram Piari and father Mela Ram in Chiniot (now in Pakistan).
- Graduated from Punjab University in Chandigarh.
- Worked as personal secretary to then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi - 1962-1984.
- Elected to the Rajya Sabha - 1990.
- Member, Committee on Public Undertakings, Committee on Home Affairs, Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Communications - 1991-95.
- Minister of State (Independent charge), Ministry of Urban Development.
- Elected to the Rajya Sabha - 2004.
- Member, Committee on Home Affairs, Committee on Public Accounts, Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Railways - 2004.
- Member, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Committee on Defence - 2006.
- General Secretary, Congress Party and in charge of Uttarakhand.
