RAW founder's covert Dhaka mission revealed as agency marks 58 years

India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) marked 58 years of operation this month, with the milestone prompting accounts of pivotal moments from the agency's early history. Among the significant episodes is a covert visit to Bangladesh by R.N. Kao, the agency's founder and first chief, who adopted a disguise to conduct an on-ground assessment in Dhaka. Kao assumed the identity of a betel leaf merchant—a common street presence in South Asian cities—to move through the city without drawing attention from local authorities or intelligence services. The mission took place several months before the assassination of Bangladesh's founding leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in August 1975, a watershed event in the region's political history. According to accounts of the period, Kao used the opportunity to warn associates of imminent security threats during his clandestine interactions in the capital. The operation exemplifies the hands-on intelligence gathering methods employed by RAW during its formative years, when the agency was establishing its operational protocols and regional networks. Such covert fieldwork by senior intelligence officials was characteristic of Cold War-era espionage practices, reflecting the high-stakes geopolitical environment in which India's intelligence machinery was developed.