‘They were caught by the Chinese': NSA Ajit Doval recounts moment he thought was end of his career

National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval, while speaking at the convocation ceremony of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, recalled the moment he thought his career was all but over.

He told the students about the time when a team he had dispatched for border surveillance was captured by the Chinese army. Though he was found not at fault, the incident left him distressed.

The incident

NSA Ajit Doval said that in his 20s, he was posted in Sikkim. Monitoring activities along the border were part of his responsibilities.

"I was a young IPS officer, new to the intelligence profession. I was in my 20s, and I was posted as in charge of intelligence in Sikkim. That was not a part of India at that time. It was becoming part of India. I was part of that process where the merger was taking place," Doval said.

"...my responsibility also included looking after the border areas and collecting intelligence about the movement of the PLA, activities of the Chinese Army," NSA Ajit Doval said at the IIT Roorkee Convocation.

Doval said that ahead of Sikkim's merger with India, he sent a team on a five-day mission for border surveillance. The team, which was supposed to return in eight days, did not return even after 10 days.

He said, "..we had an intelligence mission in the border area, and about eight days later, they had to return. So, five days went by, then 10 days went by, then perhaps 15 days went by."

"For me, it was a matter of very great concern, not only professionally but also on the human side, that so many people — we don't know whether they are dead or alive, and what has happened to them. We got no reports of any avalanche or anything. It was a matter of deep worry and concern," he added.

In that moment, Doval said, he thought that it was the end of his career.

He then received a call from the Intelligence Bureau headquarters, informing him that the team was in the custody of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). Later, the team was released unharmed from Chinese custody.

"I got a telephone call from the headquarters, and my boss told me, 'Have you sent some people across?' I said, 'I do not know. They must be coming. They should have come in five or six days, but now it is about ten or eleven days.' He said, "They are in Chinese custody now,'" Doval recalled the conversation.

"They were caught by the Chinese and interrogated. Anyway, the Chinese returned them, probably after some talks or negotiations, or a deal must have been struck. So, they returned totally shattered, in shambles. And an inquiry was started. I knew that this was the end of my career," Doval said.

"I was still in my 20s, and I had to start a new career. I saw the incident as something very unprofessional. Anyway, the inquiry was over."

An inquiry into the incident found errors in the sketches and maps that were provided to the team by the headquarters, which caused confusion about the border's location, Doval said.

"I wasn't found at fault. Probably, I had done everything right. The sketches and the maps that were given to us by the headquarters had some defects and mistakes in them. That is how it happened...," the NSA added.

'Extremely dejected'

The inquiry did not hold Doval responsible. Despite this, he said, the incident left him deeply disappointed and distressed.

"I was very sad. It was that phase of life when you feel extremely dejected," Doval said.

A valuable lesson

During this difficult time, advice from a Tibetan Sherpa colleague left him with a valuable life lesson.

"It is all a matter of map-reading. Some people read maps correctly, while others get it wrong," Doval said, sharing the advice from the Sherpa, who he said had scaled Mount Everest eight times and spent years amidst snowy peaks.

The NSA said the Sherpa also shared three questions that have influenced his life significantly: first, where are you on the map; second, where do you want to go; and third, what is the route to get there and come back.

Over time, this advice evolved from merely a way to navigate mountainous paths into a perspective on life, Doval said.