The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) is unlikely to challenge the High Court decision to acquit and release former terror leader and Parliamentarian Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias ‘Pillayan’ over the killing of TNA MP Joseph Pararajasingham on Christmas day, 2005. In fact all fellow party members of the slain TNA MP have maintained a stoic silence on the matter since.
Commenting on the acquittal and release of Pillayan, TNA MP M.A Sumanthiran who is currently in quarantine said the TNA has not made any decision to appeal the judgement given by the Batticaloa High Court before the Supreme Court of the country. “I do not think it will be of any use” he told a reporter. The party has not yet issued an official statement regarding the matter.
When the case was taken up in the Batticaloa High Court on Monday (11) before Judge D.Suisaidasan, the AG’S Department informed the court that it had no intention of taking the case forward. Therefore the Batticaloa High Court acquitted and released Pillayan today (13),
Prominent TNA MP Joseph Pararajasingam was shot dead while attending a service at St. Mary’s Church in Batticaloa on December 25, 2005. Pararajasingham was shot dead by gunmen in military fatigues and he was killed on the spot.
The MP’s wife, Sugunam Pararajasingham sustained serious injuries in the gunfire while several others were also injured. Some eyewitnesses reported that the gunmen left in a rickshaw and headed towards the Patpodi camp, an old tooth powder factory used by the Karuna paramilitary group. Pillayan was part of the Karuna Amman led Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pullikal (TMVP) at the time Pararajasingham was killed.
Two TMVP paramilitaries, Pradeep Master (Edwin Silva Krishnanandaraja) and Gajan Maamaa (Rangasami Kanaganayagam), were arrested by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on 8 October 2015 in connection with Pararajasingham’s assassination. Pillayan was also arrested by the CID, on 11 October 2015, in connection with the assassination and was remanded for four years and was released on bail on November 24, 2020. Four other suspects were also acquitted and released by the courts.
Pararajasingham was a Sri Lankan Tamil civil servant, journalist, businessman and politician. He was a known Tamil nationalist and Tamil rights crusader. He was Member of Parliament for Batticaloa District from 1990 to 2004 and a National List Member of Parliament from 2004 to 2005. Following his killing the LTTE conferred the title Maamanithar (great human being) on Pararajasingham.
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