Indian James Bond

Ajit Kumar Doval- Many Indians are still do not knowing his name, as he works so discretely , and is never in limelight . He is known as the ‘James Bond of India’, is a retired  Indian Police Services (IPS) officer of the Kerala cadre, and a former Indian intelligence and law enforcement officer. Presently he is National Security Adviser to the Indian Prime Minister, this post he took after his retirement. He had an active role in curbing terrorism and insurgency in various states of India like Punjab and Mizoram. He had been part of negotiations in well over 15 hijackings of Indian airlines over a period spanning 28 years.

Here are some interesting facts that one should know about:

1 he was born in Ghiri Banelysun village in Pauri Garhwal in Garhwali family. His father, Major Gunananda Doval, was an officer in the Indian Army.

2 He did his schooling at King George’s Royal Indian Military School (now known as Ajmer Military School), in Ajmer , Rajasthan. In 1967, from Agra University, he graduated with a Master’s degree in Economics. In 2017, he was awarded an honorary doctorate in science from Agra University.

3 In 1968, he joined the Indian Police Service. According to police records, the IPS officer, who is considered the ‘Indian James Bond, worked in Thalassery for a brief period from 2^nd January 1972 to 9^th June 1972.

4 A young officer with just 3 years of experience, who was then ASP in Kottayam, was assigned the duty by then home minister K Karunakaran. Though the riots in Thalassery, in which RSS was accused of targeting Muslims and their mosques, lasted for only a couple of days. Karunakaran wanted to avert it escalating further, the young officer Doval was assigned toThalassery, where he worked for 5 months and he later joined the central service, which marked the beginning of his career as the ‘Indian James Bond.’

5 He played a crucial role as one of three negotiators in the release of passengers from the hijacked Indian Airlines plane in Kandhar in 1999.

6 Retired as the Director of Intelligence Bureau in January 2005, he lived in Pakistan’s Lahore, disguised as a Muslim for seven years. During these years in Pakistan, he befriended the locals visiting mosques and lived among the predominantly Muslim population. Acknowledged as a master of psychological welfare, he as part of his job also spied on Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI.

7 Operation Blue Star, which was conducted in 1984 to choke the Khalistani is another instance where he showcased his excellence by gathering crucial intelligence for the operation.

8 After his retirement, he was appointed as India’s 5^th National Security Adviser on 30^th May 2014. In July 2014, he ensured the secure return of 46 Indian nurses, trapped in Tikrit, Iraq.

9 He is popular for the doctrinal shift in Indian national security policy in relation to Pakistan. The Indian National Security policy changed from Defensive to defensive Offensive to Double Squeeze strategy. As per reports, the 2016 Indian strikes in Pakistan-controlled Kashmir were his brainchild.

10 He was the youngest police officer to receive Police Medal for his meritorious service. He received an award after completing 6 years of his service in the police.

11 In 1998, he was conferred with the highest gallantry award –Kirti Chakra. He was the first police officer to receive this award, which was earlier given as a military honour.

Finally, today, India’s defence policy is more polished, sharper, and powerful because of Ajit Doval’s strategic vision and all these facts make him truly a great strategist as well as a well-deserving National Security adviser of the nation.

So these are some of the facts about a man who is always behind the scene, but his works speak for himself.

Waiting for your views on this blog.

Anil Malik

Mumbai, India

21^st April 2022