He was one of the “primary founders and activists” of the Organization of Struggle for Liberation of the Working Class in Bengaluru, India, and was a well known and active person.

Information regarding the extrajudicial killing of Mr. Abdolamir (Amir) Rahdar was compiled from an electronic form sent to Abdorrahman Boroumand Center (March 19, 2022), Abdorrahman Boroumand Center Interview with four informed sources, including a student who witnessed the event (January 13, 2022), a political and student activist in India (September 3, 2021 and July 29, 2022), a Student Affairs representative (during 1979-1982), and the Interim Consular Head for the Islamic Republic in India (June 3, 2022).  Additional information was obtained from Jahan Publication #7 (December 18, 1982), “Remember” program at Clubhouse (August 21, 2021), Sharhvand Magazine (October 1, 2015), Enqelab e Eslami Newspaper (December 29, 1979), Imam Khomeini Portal (September 1, 1979; August 28, 1980 and January 4, 1981; November 3, 1981), the book “Report to the People” published by Baran, written by AliAkbar Omidmehr (2001-2002), Oral History of Iran (Research date: June 21, 2022), India Today newspaper (July 15, 1982), United Press International (August 17, 1982), and Andisheh va Paykar website.

Mr. Amir Rahdar’s name appears in a list of 430 people named “Martyrs of the Organization of Struggle for Liberty of the Working Class” in the Andisheh va Paykar internet site. This list includes members of this organization who died after the 1979 revolution, with more than 400  having been executed.  This killing has also been reported in Attachment #261 of “Mojahed” publication, published by Mojahedin e Khalq Organization of Iran, dated September 6, 1985.  This attachment includes a list of 12028 people, most of whom were affiliated with political groups opposed to the government.  These individuals were either executed by the government or killed during clashes with Islamic Republic security forces, from June 20, 1981 up to the printing of this publication.

Mr. Rahdar was born in 1956, into a working-class family with many children, in Abadan (Electronic form, March 19, 2022; Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021; Shahrvand site, October 1, 2015).

Rahdar attended school in Abadan and then Shiraz.  After earning his high school diploma and completing his military service, he went to India in 1978 for higher education.  He got married and began his studies in Mathematics and Statistics at Bengaluru University.  Rahdar was one of the “primary founders and activists” of the Organization of Struggle for Liberation of the Working Class in Bengaluru in India, where he was active and well known (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).  

Mr. Rahdar’s friends generally describe him as friendly, happy, and genuine. He enjoyed sports, particularlysoccer (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021; Shahrvand site, October 1, 2015).

The background of The Peykar Organization for the Liberation of the Working Class

The Peykar Organization for the Liberation of the Working Class was founded by dissident members of the Mojahedin Khalq Organization who had converted to Marxism-Leninism. The founding tenets of Peykar included the rejection of guerrilla struggle and a strong stand against the pro-Soviet policies of the Iranian Tudeh Party. Peykar viewed the Soviet Union as a “social imperialist” state, believed that China had deviated from Marxist-Leninist principles, and radically opposed all factions of the Islamic regime of Iran.  Peykar was also joined by a number of political organizations known as Khat-e Se (The Third Line). The brutal repression of dissidents by the Iranian government, along with internal splits within Peykar in 1981 and 1982, effectively dismantled the organization and scattered its supporters. By the mid-1980s, Peykar was no longer in existence.

The background of Iranian students' movements in India

The British colonial presence in India established  an education system and institutions similar to those in the developed countries. Combined with the lower cost of living and education, India became a favored destination for higher education for middle class Iranians since the Qajar era. Consequently,  Iranian students' movements in India have a long history: since at least the 1970s, student activists opposing the monarchy of the Pahlavi dynasty joined groups such as the Mojahedin Khalq Organization, the Fadaiyan Khalq, the Tudeh Party, the Union of Iranian Communists, and the Ranjbaran Party of Iran, either as members or as sympathizers. 

The sympathizers of Ayatollah Khomeini gradually formed the Islamic Association of Students in the late 1970s. These associations competed with secular groups, particularly those with leftist and Marxist worldview. However, their rivalries were limited to recruiting new members from among not-yet-committed students and engaging in ideological debates in their periodicals (Oral History of Iran, Jun. 21, 2022). Following the victory of the revolution in February 1979 and Khomeini’s rise to power,  tension escalated between political groups within the country— such as the sympathizers of Shapour Bakhtiar and later other Leftist groups, such as the Fadaiyan Khalq (Minority) and the Mojahedin Khalq Organization, on the one hand—and the supporters of Ayatollah Khomeini. Opposing groups of overseas students engaged in violent confrontations. (Boroumand Center research) 

Dissidents of the Islamic Republic circulated handouts and newspapers reflecting events in Iran, ranging from executions and  corporal  punishment, toflogging, in accordance with the Islamic law of Shari’a, to other human rights violations. They also organized public rallies and demonstrations protesting against these events, the newly established regime and Ayatollah Khomeini (interview with an eye-witness on Jan. 13, 2022). In India, some students joined a committee called "Solidarity with Human Rights and Democracy," formed by a group of Indian activists. They organized demonstrations protesting against the Islamic Republic of Iran and the presence of its officials in India, such as  during a visit of Hashemi Rafsanjani, then president of the Islamic parliament, in the summer 1982. (Be Yad Ar, Clubhouse, Aug. 21, 2021; Shahrvand magazine, Oct. 1, 2015)

Sponsored by the regime in Tehran, the Islamic Associations of Students in India utilized  resources and facilities provided by the Islamic Republic to expand their activities. The available information reveals that there was a direct link between the Islamic Associations of Students and Iran's embassy and consulates in India. According to Aliakbar Omidmehr, in charge of students welfare in the consulate and the temporary head of the chancery in India in 1979, members of the Islamic Associations of Students benefited from allowances paid out from a special fund secretly set up in the consulate for that purpose (interview with Abdorrahman Boroumand Center, Jun. 3, 2022). Some members of the Islamic Associations of Students in India were later appointed to prominent positions, e.g. as members of the parliament, or as ambassadors, chargés d'affaires or attachés in foreign countries (Report to the Nation , 2001-2002, published by Boroumand Center). Reports suggest discriminatory treatment of opponent students, where financial assistance and preferential exchange rates for foreign currency were granted based on ideological alignment.  According to a statement issued by the head of chancery of the Islamic Republic in Hyderabad on Oct. 8, 1982,  " only students who have attended and successfully passed the ideological appraisal are eligible for the  preferential exchange rate applied to overseas students” (Jahan publication, Dec. 18, 1982). In his memoirs, Aliakbar Omidmehr evokes how, in 1979, the supply of foreign currency to overseas students who opposed the Islamic regime was discontinued.  (Report to the Nation, 2001-2002) 

Apart from the practice of a discriminatory treatment of opponent students designed to reinforce the Islamic students, the regime exploited official visits to foreign countries to organize meetings with members of the Islamic Associations of Students, urging them to monitor the activities of the other political groups (Boroumand Center research). In meetings with these students, Ayatollah Khomeini urged them  to " make Islam known to the world," saying ; "this is a unique asset that no one else has...it is your duty to make it known to the world..." (Imam Khomeini Portal, Sept. 1, 1979). In another meeting with Iranian students studying in India he said: "the superpowers...have toiled to distort the image of the Islamic movement of Iran. We must endeavor... we must take heed of what is right and ensure that the right shall prevail in all Muslim countries...where a few astrayed individuals in India or Pakistan and other Muslim lands attempt to deface our Islamic movement, you, the Islamic brethren who are present in those lands have a duty  to stand up to them (Imam Khomeini Portal, Aug. 28, 1980). An opponent of the Islamic Republic in India stated that those who were in favor of Ayatollah Khomeini resorted to violence and engaged in altercations with his opponents to confine their activities. He said "when they saw that we had our own publications on the campus, they attacked us; they even attacked the university residence hall where we stayed to set fire to the place. They had done so in other cities. When they saw us in the street, they threatened us.” (interview with an eye witness, Jan. 13, 2022) 

In December 1979, Ayatollah Hossain Nouri Hamedani, a radical cleric, was sent to India as the special envoy of Ayatollah Khomeini to assess the condition of the Muslims and Islamic schools in India and Pakistan, and identify their needs and shortcomings   for potential remedies (Imam Khomeini Portal, Dec. 27, 1979). According to  a student present at the meeting between the Ayatollah and members of the Islamic Associations of Students, the Ayatollah disparaged the male students, then turned to the women and remarked: "these are outright bums, else no one would have ever dared to hand out a single tract defying the Islamic Republic." The student added that, "After that meeting, members of the Islamic Associations conducted themselves even more viciously towards the students of the opposing groups so much so that for years we didn't dare walk around by ourselves and remained constantly on guard. As soon as a tract was handed out, they attacked us” (interview with an activist student in India, Feb. 22 & 25 , 2022). Reports of assault, kidnapping, and assassination targeting students who were members of groups opposing the Islamic Republic in India were rampant in the local press during those years. In May 1982, supporters of the Islamic Republic unexpectedly assaulted a group of students opposing the regime, resulting in  one student’s death and several injuries (India Today, Jul. 15, 1982). In September 1982, numerous reports of demonstrations by opponents of the Islamic Republic in Bangalore surfaced, detailing violent assaults  by Ayatollah Khomeini’s supporters on demonstrators, resulting in the death of one student and injuries to many others. 86 students were arrested following the incident (Clubhouse, Aug. 11, 2022; Shahrvand, Oct. 1, 2015). Enghelab-e Eslami newspaper reported a clash between  students supporting and opposing Ayatollah Khomeini in Bangalore, with 10 wounded and 14 arrested during the clashes (Enghelab-e Eslami newspaper, Dec. 29, 1979).  Despite arrests of a number of people, in each case,  rarely did any case proceed to a court of law or receive formal attention from  Indian officials. An article published in India Today about clashes between Iranian students in India also highlighted increasing economic ties between the two countries and the heightened supply of crude oil to India after the Islamic revolution and during the Iran-Iraq war (India Today, July 15, 1982). The two countries  pursued and agreed upon increased economic transactions in various sectors, including nuclear energy, in the early 1980s during a visit by Mr. Hashemi Rafsanjani to India. (United Press International (Aug. 17, 1982)

Background of Extrajudicial Killings by the Islamic Republic of Iran

The Islamic Republic of Iran has a long history of politically motivated violence in Iran and around the world. Since the 1979 Revolution, Islamic Republic operatives inside and outside the country have engaged in kidnapping, disappearing, and killing a large number of individuals whose activities they deemed undesirable. The actual number of the victims of extrajudicial killings inside Iran is not clear; however, these murders began in February 1979 and have continued since then, both inside and outside Iran. The Abdorrahman Boroumand Center has so far identified over 540 killings outside Iran attributed to the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Dissidents have been assassinated by the agents of the Islamic Republic outside Iran in countries such as the Philippines, Indonesia, Japan, India, and Pakistan in Asia; Dubai, Iraq, and Turkey in the Middle East; Cyprus, France, Italy, Austria, Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Sweden, and Great Britain in Europe; and the United States across the Atlantic Ocean. In most cases, there has not been much published, and local authorities have not issued arrest warrants. But documentation, evidence, and traces obtained through investigations conducted by local police and judicial authorities confirm the theory of state committed crimes. In some instances, these investigations have resulted in the expulsion or arrest of Iranian diplomats. In a few cases outside Iran, the perpetrators of these murders have been arrested and put on trial. The evidence presented revealed the defendants’ connection to Iran’s government institutions, and an arrest warrant has been issued for Iran’s Minister of Information.

The manner in which these killings were organized and implemented in Iran and abroad is indicative of a single pattern which, according to Roland Chatelin, the Swiss prosecutor, contains common parameters and detailed planning. It can be ascertained from the similarities between these murders in different countries that the Iranian government is the principal entity that ordered the implementation of these crimes. Iranian authorities have not officially accepted responsibility for these murders and have even attributed their commission to internal strife in opposition groups. Nevertheless, since the very inception of the Islamic Republic regime, the Islamic Republic officials have justified these crimes from an ideological and legal standpoint. In the spring of 1979, Sadeq Khalkhali, the first Chief Shari’a Judge of the Islamic Revolutionary Courts, officially announced the regime’s decision to implement extrajudicial executions and justified the decision: “ … These people have been sentenced to death; from the Iranian people’s perspective, if someone wants to assassinate these individuals abroad, in any country, no government has any right to bring the perpetrator to trial as a terrorist, because such a person is the implementing agent of the sentence issued by the Islamic Revolutionary Court. Therefore, they are Mahduroddam and their sentence is death regardless of where they are.” More than 10 years after these proclamations, in a speech about the security forces’ success, Ali Fallahian, the regime’s Minister of Information, stated the following regarding the elimination of members of the opposition: “ … We have had success in inflicting damage to many of these little groups outside the country and on our borders.”

At the same time, various political, judicial, and security officials of the Islamic Republic of Iran have, at different times and occasions, confirmed the existence of a long term government policy for these extrajudicial killings and in some cases their implementation. 

Read more about the background of extrajudicial killings in the Islamic Republic of Iran by clicking on the left hand highlight with the same title.

Mr. Abdolamir Rahdar’s Extrajudicial Killing

Mr. Rahdar was participating in a student demonstration against the Islamic Republic in Bengaluru, India, on the afternoon of September 29, 1982, when unidentified individuals attacked the demonstrators. He was struck with knives and chains, leading to his death.

A few minutes into the “Protest against oppression, suppression, and killings in Iran” demonstration, members of Islamic Student Organizations in India and supporters of Ayatollah Khomeini attacked the demonstrators with clubs, knives, machetes, chains, and bayonets.

The demonstration was organized  to protest “oppression, suppression, and execution” in Iran. Many groups cooperated with the students in this effort, such as the People’s Union for Civil Liberties* which is supported by several left-wing Indian politicians, Human Rights activists, and several student groups in India who oppose the current regime, including supporters of Paykar Organization, Organization of Loyal Guerillas of the People (minority), and Mojahedin e Khalq. The event had been planned, and the time and place had been advertised in the media (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021; Center interview with a student who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022). According to some of the student activists who participated in this demonstration, the Chief of Police of Bengaluru had informed the Indian organizers that a group of supporters of the Islamic Republic were planning to disrupt the demonstration. These supporters had stated, “Khomeini is our spiritual leader and we will not tolerate any insults to him.”  Additionally, some of the student groups were aware of  the Islamic Association’s intention to disrupt the demonstration (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).

Around 4 pm, the demonstrators gathered near one of the colleges at Bengaluru University.  Half an hour later, they began marching toward the mayor’s residence, holding placards in hand and  chanting slogans such as “Stop torture, execution, and killings in Iran” and “Free political prisoners.”  Several Indian politicians and human rights activists led the march, accompanied by  Indian police.  According to multiple reports, about 20 minutes after the demonstration began, tens of supporters of Ayatollah Khomeini and members of Islamic student associations in India arrived in two buses.  These masked individuals attacked the back rows of demonstrators with clubs, knives, machetes, chains, and bayonets.  As the demonstrators fled, another group pelted them with rocks from behind the walls of Bengaluru University.  Consequently, many supporters of various groups opposing the Islamic Republic were injured (Center interview with a student who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022; Jahan Publication #7, December 18, 1982; Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).

As a member of the security team for the demonstration, Mr. Rahdar was walking at the back and periphery of the protestors.  Around 6 pm, he was assaulted with knives and chains by the attackers.  It is reported that a knife penetrated 2 inches into his body,  injuring his kidney, lung, and spleen.  Mr. Rahdar’s friends and companions transported him to the hospital on a motorbike, but he  passed away at the hospital approximately 45 minutes later (Electronic form, March 19, 2022; Center interview with a student who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022; Jahan Publication #7; Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).

One of Mr. Rahdar’s friends, emphasizing  that “he was known,” recounted this incident: “I remember another time, Amir and I were riding a motorbike.  At one point, we were stopped and accosted with curses and vilification… He was well known.  [He] was active in many areas,in democratic associations and also in other activities.”  According to the Andisheh and Paykar websites, the Islamic Republic had identified Rahdar as one of the “most active supporters of Paykar Organization” in India.  They had assaulted him many times (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021; Andisheh and Paykar website).

After being kept at the morgue, Mr. Rahdar was buried at the Bengaluru City Cemetery.  His funeral was attended by his friends and accompanied by a police escort (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).

FollowingMr. Rahdar’s death, 28 supporters of various groups opposing the Islamic Republic staged a week-long sit-in at the garden of a member of parliament.  It has been said that in response to this terrorist attack and  Mr. Rahdar’s killing, some people went on strike and protested in Delhi, Mumbai, and HyderAbad (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021; Jahan Publication, December 18, 1982).

Iranian Officials’ Reaction

There has not been an official reaction from Iranian officials regarding the killing of Mr. Rahdar.

According to available information, when 86 students affiliated with  the Islamic Association were arrested and imprisoned, Islamic Republic officials put significant effort into supporting them and securing their release.  Different sources indicate that Ayatollah Rafsanjani played a direct role in making certain economic relations between the two countries conditional upon the release of these individuals (Center interview with students who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022; Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021; Paykar and Andisheh website).

Sometime after the attacks on this demonstration and the killing of Mr. Rahdar in September 1982, Radio and Television of the Islamic Republic broadcast a report and pictures about the police arresting the individuals who disrupted the demonstrations, titled “Attack on Revolutionary Moslem Brothers” (Center interview with students who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022).

According to some accounts, security organizations in Iran threatened the families of people who were supposed to be called as witnesses in the court proceedings related to the attack on the demonstration and the killing of Mr. Rahdar. Most of these witnesses refused to appear in court and to give testimony (Center interview with students who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022; Interview with a political activist – a student in India, September 3, 2021).

The Indian Government’s Reaction

According to available information, the Indian government has not expressed a formal reaction to the killing of Mr. Rahdar.

Shortly after the attack on the demonstration began, the Bengaluru police reacted by deploying  tear gas. They arrested 86 people from among those attacking the demonstrators.  According to some student activists and participants in the demonstration, “Those who were arrested were the ones who were throwing stones from behind the university walls, not those attacking the demonstrators from behind with knives [although they were] much more professional agents.” (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).

The court released the prisoners on bail after about six months (Center interview with students who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022).

During 1984-1985, a court convened in India to resolve this case.  Eventually, the court condemned the arrested individuals for the killing of  Mr. Rahdar.  However, since “it is not clear exactly who committed this murder,” the total time spent by all of these people in jail (six months for 86 people, equaling 43 years) was considered the maximum prison sentence for murder in the Indian judicial system, and thereby the case was declared closed (Center interview with students who witnessed the event, January 13, 2022; Interview with a political activist – a student in India, September 3, 2021).

Family’s Reaction

There is not much information on whether Mr. Rahdar’s family tried to follow up on his murder case.

Mr. Rahdar’s family feared that Tehran Airport would not accept the bodies of people who had opposed the government and requested asylum.  Therefore, they had no choice but to have their son buried in Bengaluru, India (Stories from “Remember” at Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).

Impacts on Family

According to available information, after Mr. Rahdar’s killing, his wife was forced to leave India illegally.  She emigrated to Canada and then to the United States.  She was in a very bad mental state and dealt with this problem for a long time (Electronic form, March 19, 2022; Clubhouse, August 21, 2021).

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(*) The People’s Union for Civil Liberties was a non-profit Indian group, supported by several democratic and left-wing politicians, that worked for human rights.  This group had previously organized successful demonstrations against Ayatollah Hashemi Rafsanjani’s visit to India, provoking the wrath of groups supporting the Islamic Republic.