# NSA Ajit Doval recounts 1975 Sikkim mission that nearly ended his career

2026-09-21T03:22:48+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 2 independent outlets

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval told IIT Roorkee convocation that a 1975 surveillance team he dispatched in Sikkim was captured by the Chinese army and that he feared his career was finished. Doval said the team did not return for over 10 days and that his boss called to inform him they were in Chinese custody. Negotiations secured the team's release, but an inquiry followed. Doval said he was cleared after the inquiry found faulty maps from headquarters had caused the border confusion. He recounted advice from a Tibetan Sherpa colleague who had climbed Mount Everest eight times: three questions about location, destination, and route that Doval said shaped his life. Sikkim was merging with India at the time of the 1975 incident.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

Both sources report Doval's IIT Roorkee convocation speech, but Republic World frames the episode as a heroic 'R&AW gamble' from India's 'most revered spymaster', opening with triumphal language and downplaying the operational failure. Livemint leads with the moment Doval thought his career was over and treats it as a personal lesson without the patriotic gloss. Neither source details the deal that secured the team's release or the identity of the Sherpa who advised Doval. The inquiry that cleared Doval is the key takeaway for both.

## Coverage

- livemint.com (neutral report) <https://www.livemint.com/news/india/they-were-caught-by-the-chinese-nsa-ajit-doval-recounts-moment-he-thought-was-end-of-his-career-11789888692169.html>
  Leads with career jeopardy and personal distress, keeps the tone strictly biographical without heroism
- republicworld.com (pro government) <https://www.republicworld.com/india/raw-s-sikkim-gamble-of-1975-india-s-super-spy-ajit-doval-breaks-silence-on-the-mission-that-made-him-think-he-was-finished-2026-09-19-137322>
  Frames the incident as a spymaster legend, uses superlative patriotic language and downplays the failure

Tags: Ajit Doval, IIT Roorkee, National Security Advisor, People's Liberation Army, Sikkim
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Cite: https://indianopinion.org/nsa-ajit-doval-recounts-1975-sikkim-mission-that-nearly-ended-his-career/#story-in-brief