1988 Maldives coup d ' état The 1988 Maldives coup d ' état , whose rescue efforts were code - named Operation Cactus by the Indian armed forces , was the attempt by a group of Maldivians led by Abdullah Luthufi and assisted by armed mercenaries of a Tamil secessionist organisation from Sri Lanka , the People ' s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam ( PLOTE ) , to overthrow the government in the island republic of Maldives . The coup d ' état failed due to the intervention of the Indian Army . Prelude . Whereas the 1980 and 1983 coup d ' état attempts against Maumoon Abdul Gayoom ' s presidency were not considered serious , the third coup d ' état attempt in November 1988 alarmed the international community . About 80 armed PLOTE mercenaries landed in the capital Malé before dawn aboard speedboats from a freighter . Disguised as visitors , a similar number had already infiltrated Malé earlier . The mercenaries quickly gained control of the capital , including the major government buildings , airport , port and television and radio stations . However , they failed to capture President Gayoom , who fled from house to house and asked for military intervention from India , the United States , and the United Kingdom . Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi immediately dispatched 1 , 600 troops by air to restore order in Malé . Operation Cactus . The operation started on the night of November 3 , 1988 , when Ilyushin Il - 76 aircraft of the Indian Air Force airlifted the elements of the 50th Independent Parachute Brigade , commanded by Brig Farukh Bulsara , the 6th Battalion of the Parachute Regiment , and , the 17th Parachute Field Regiment from Agra Air Force Station and flew them non - stop over 2 , 000 kilometres ( 1 , 240 mi ) to air - drop them over the Malé International Airport on Hulhule Island . The Indian Army paratroopers arrived on Hulhule less than 12 hours after the appeal from President Gayoom . The Indian paratroopers immediately secured the airfield , crossed over to Male using commandeered boats and rescued President Gayoom . The paratroopers restored control of the capital to President Gayoom ' s government within hours . Some of the mercenaries fled toward Sri Lanka in a hijacked freighter . Those unable to reach the ship in time were quickly rounded up and handed over to the Maldives government . Nineteen people reportedly died in the fighting , most of them mercenaries . The dead included two hostages killed by the mercenaries . The Indian Navy frigates " Godavari " and " Betwa " intercepted the freighter off the Sri Lankan coast , and captured the mercenaries . Swift operation by the military and precise intelligence information successfully quelled the attempted coup d ' état in the island nation . Aftermath . In July 1989 , India repatriated the mercenaries captured on board the hijacked freighter to Maldives to stand trial . President Gayoom commuted the death sentences passed against them to life imprisonment under Indian pressure . The 1988 coup d ' état had been headed by a once prominent Maldivian businessperson named Abdullah Luthufi , who was operating a farm on Sri Lanka . Former Maldivian President Ibrahim Nasir was accused , but denied any involvement in the coup d ' état . In fact , in July 1990 , President Gayoom officially pardoned Nasir in absentia in recognition of his role in obtaining Maldives ' independence . The operation also strengthened Indo - Maldivian relations as a result of the successful restoration of the Gayoom government .