LTTE officers honor their ‘guru’ in the Indian Army who trained them 30 years ago

An Indian Army Brigadier who served 30 years ago as an officer at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun was invited as a special guest by Sri Lankan Army officers who trained at the academy. The retired Brigadier Mandeep Singh Sandhu (Retd) was a member of the elite 10 Para Commando unit and was a member of the Indian Peacekeeping Force in Sri Lanka from 1987 until 1989, after which he was assigned to train the first batch of Sri Lankan Army officers at the IMA Dehradun.

‘I had shed blood in Jaffna in Sri Lanka and at the IMA, I imparted training to the cadets based on my combat experience that I had gained during my stint there,’ Brigadier Sandhu told ANI. The last time he interacted with his Sri Lankan cadets was in 1991 as part of the IMA where they had formed a special bond of respect for each other’s countries.

Sandhu, who now lives in Canada, was invited to a reunion by the Sri Lankan Army officers from the batch known as ‘Intake 31’ in 2021. Sandhu visited Sri Lanka from March 2 to March 10 this year and visited the Sri Lankan Military Academy in Diyatalawa at the invitation of the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry.

‘Two days were spent with the Intake 31 officers at the SLMA as they wanted to honour their Guruji as per their military traditions as not only did I train them but I also shed blood in their country for ensuring peace there,’ Sandhu said. Sandhu trained most of the officers at the IMA as instructors, and many of them still serve as senior officers today.

Sandhu visited several places during his 10-day stay in Sri Lanka, including a war memorial in Jaffna dedicated to the memory of elite 10 Para Commando unit troops who laid down their lives in the fight against the Liberation Tiger of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) terrorists. Sandhu, a harmonica player, said the Sri Lankan Army also fulfilled his wish to create a music video under the theme ‘Harmonica Peace’. As a special gesture, the retired Indian Army Special Forces officer was provided with an escort by the Sri Lankan Army Special Forces during his visit.