28 March, 2024

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A Reply To The Private Secretary To The Chief Minister Of NPC

By Muttukrishna Sarvananthan

Dr. Muttukrishna Sarvananthan

Dr. Muttukrishna Sarvananthan

I read the response titled “On Malicious & Defamatory Allegations Against The NPC Chief Minister” by the “Private Secretary to the Chief Minister\Northern Province” in the Colombo Telegraph to my opinion piece titled “‘Is The Chief Minister Of The NPC Ethically & Morally Fit To Govern?” in the Colombo Telegraph of 28 July 2015. The Private Secretary to the CM claims that my allegations are “malicious and defamatory”. I challenge the Chief Minister to take legal action against me if my claims are indeed “malicious and defamatory”.

It may be true that more Hindu temples were destroyed or damaged than places of worship of any other religious faith in Sri Lanka during the entire course of the quarter century of civil war between 1983 and 2009. However, my claim that “As a matter of fact many more Churches and Mosques were attacked than Hindu temples….” refers to the post-civil war period only (May 2009 to date). Moreover, I referred to the complaint by the CM to Dalai Lama (as reported by Tamil newspapers in Sri Lanka) and not to his Kannapiran memorial address. Although I may not entirely trust the numbers of Hindu places of worship destroyed or damaged disclosed by the Private Secretary to the CM (citing various sources) in his response, I may agree that, since 1983 to date, more Hindu places of worship were destroyed or damaged than places of worship of any other religion in Sri Lanka.

The Chief Minster should clarify whether his meeting with the RSS Chief was at the World Hindu Congress conclave or separate one-to-one meeting. If it was the former he could be forgiven, but not if it was the latter.

The fact that the Private Secretary to the CM has not disputed the CM’s visit to the Premananda ashram in Trichy, the commemorative meeting for Premananda in Colombo in March 2015, and the CM’s letter to the Prime Minister of India pleading on behalf of the co-convicts along Premananda confirm the claims made in my opinion piece.

The Private Secretary’s claim that the CM has had a number of “………productive meetings with” personnel from overseas and local including this author is untenable. I would greatly appreciate if the private Secretary to the CM reveals the tangible benefits to the people of the Northern Province emanating from such “productive meetings”.

I do agree that I have been in touch with the CM virtually via electronic mail on matters of importance to the province, but nothing productive happened except in just one case; whereby I facilitated the donation of used (but high quality) school books to the Provincial Ministry of Education by a leading international school in Colombo in March 2014. Pursuant to requests made by couple of professional colleagues I had contacted the CM to see whether my research institution could be of any use to the newly formed Northern Provincial Council (NPC). However, to date the CM has not reciprocated positively. When I sought an appointment for a foreign delegation to meet the CM in February 2015, the CM asked me to contact a Minister of the NPC, who has been dodging my emails and telephone calls in spite of initially expressing interest in the meeting; finally, I gave up.

In his response to my opinion piece, the most untenable defence of the Private Secretary to the Chief Minister is on my claims about Rasiah Nimalan Karthikeyan. I reiterate my claims made against Rasiah Nimalan Karthikeyan in the opinion piece in the Sunday Observer of 26 July 2015 and subsequently in the Colombo Telegraph. If my claims about Nimalan Karthikeyan are in fact “defamatory” as claimed by the Private Secretary to the CM, I challenge the former to take legal action against me. The facts are as follows.

Rasiah Nimalan Karthikeyan joined the UNDP in 2002 after the ceasefire agreement between the GoSL and the LTTE as the Deputy Project Manager of the Umbrella Project of the UNDP, which was superseded by the Transition Programme in 2003. Nimalan later joined the TRO in Colombo (the humanitarian front organisation of the LTTE banned by various western countries including the UK and USA, but continues to operate in Australia even today) and appeared as its spokesperson on television in Colombo after the Tsunami of 26 December 2004. According to the Sunday Times newspaper (12th July 2015), Nimalan Karthikeyan was also a member of the LTTE delegation during the last round of peace talks held in Geneva in February 2006 during the Rajapaksa regime. http://www.sundaytimes.lk/150712/news/us-tells-wigneswaran-to-work-with-govt-scale-down-genocide-talk-156712.html

In light of the foregoing, CM’s condemnation of my “defamatory and baseless allegations made against Karthikeyan” and unequivocal denial that “…Karthikeyan was ever a Tamil Tiger member in any capacity whatsoever…” is untenable. Moreover, this author never claimed that Karthikeyan was a member of the LTTE; my claim was that Rasiah Nimalan Karthikeyan was “a former Tamil Tiger mole in the UN….”

If indeed “Karthikeyan is a respected former officer of the UNDP in Sri Lanka” as claimed by the Private Secretary to the CM, why did he join an LTTE front organisation, TRO, in late 2004. If Nimalan had not joined the LTTE delegation for peace talks with the government in February 2006, why has he not disputed the claim by the Sunday Times of 12th July 2015? Would the Chief Minister explain to the public whether Nimalan Karthikeyan was sacked by the UNDP or whether he left the UNDP voluntarily and joined the TRO in late-2004?

This author was a member of the inter-agency United Nations Mission to the Eastern and Northern Provinces of Sri Lanka in November 2002 (along with Nimalan) and met with a number of government officials (both provincial and national in Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Vavuniya, Trincomalee, and Batticaloa), UN field staff (including in Kilinochchi), representatives of the local, national, and international non-governmental organisations, civil society members, and two high ranking LTTE officials in Kilinochchi; namely Pulithevan (prior to his appointment as the Secretary General of the Peace Secretariat of the LTTE) and Thuyavan (Head of Tamil Eelam Economic Development Organisation – TEEDO). This was the first time I met Nimalan. Most of the members of this inter-agency UN Mission were foreign nationals working for the UNDP and UNHCR in Geneva. The Head of the Mission was from the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR) of the UNDP in Geneva. There were three locals representing two different UN agencies, but only Nimalan and I could understand and speak Tamil.

I do not want to delve into the details of the meeting with the high ranking LTTE officials in Kilinochchi in this reply. But I still have the transcripts of that meeting which made me to suspect that Nimalan was a LTTE mole. Nimalan’s close association with the TRO in 2004 and beyond confirmed my earlier suspicion. These are highly sensitive issues, especially in light of the upcoming parliamentary elections. If the Chief Minister requires further evidence I am willing to provide such evidence either in private or in public after the 17th August 2015.

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Latest comments

  • 9
    0

    Ping Pong game?

  • 16
    7

    Hey Muthu, why don’t you simply shut up and bugger off from the face of this planet. [Edited out]

    • 13
      1

      He is an agent of Mahinda Rajapkase. He must be offered the job to create divisions among Tamils. His motive is create a religious conflict among Tamils.

  • 7
    14

    After I observed the speech made by CM of NPC in London, I concluded that CM is under the influence of some LTTE mole within the administration. Mr. Sarvananda’s article, CM’s secretary’s response and further explanation from Sarvananda confirmed that suspicion.Chief minister’s main thrust of the speech was undermine the TNA’s current political venture. He put him self above the Tamil politics and claimed he is neutral but not at all.
    If he appeals to elect the people who are genuinely work for the people, what is that mean? Is he questioned the selection process of TNA? He also claimed that the genocide resolution is brain child of SJV, citing the memorandum submitted by SJV, in common wealth conference during 70s. Why he is raising this issues during the election period? This kind of untimely intervention undermine the TNA’s initiative and helping the Sinhala extreme elements to win over. Not only that, he is promoting fringe elements within the Tamil polity to weaken the TNA. These changes are changing very rapidly due to the LTTE elements infiltration within the NPC administration and CM’s character too.
    If TNA kept silence on these matters, that will leads dangerous situation later.

    • 4
      3

      Mr. Sivalingham,

      TNA leadership is close to those who funded LTTE in the first place. The head of TNA Canada Veluppillai Thangavelu alias Nakkeeran was the vice president of the World Tamil Movement, which was banned by Canada and was listed as a Terrorist organisation. This individual and his followers are the present day financiers of the TNA leadership – Sampanthan, Sumanthiran, Mavai etc. Add to that NPC councillors and ministers too visit Canada to raise funds through this link for TNA. Just Google and you will find them attending events hosted by this lot. Let me reproduce below from Wikipedia as to what it says about WTM.

      “On June 16, 2008, the Government of Canada formally listed the World Tamil Movement as a “terrorist organization” under the Criminal Code of Canada.[8] The World Tamil Movement, the Canadian Tamil Congress and the International Federation of Tamils condemned the move. Its vice president Velupillai Thangavelu refuted the state’s allegations of extortion, arguing the RCMP had not prosecuted a single case.[2] At the time of designation, no charges had been laid against the group or its members”.

      The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) accuses the World Tamil Movement of collecting “war taxes” from Canada’s large ethnic Tamil community and funnelling the cash to the Tamil Tigers guerrillas in Sri Lanka. During the raid on WTM offices in April 2006, RCMP officers claimed to have found “pledge forms, receipts, ledger books and lists of contributors.” The RCMP claimed it had “obtained lists of Tamil Canadians and the amounts they had donated, as well as pre-authorized bank payment forms; – Lists of businesses that had made donations in multiples of $10,000; – Plastic collection jars with the WTM and Tamil Tigers logos side by side; – Computer disks that police said suggests money flows from Montreal to Toronto, then to other countries”, with one RCMP Corporal describing what they stated they found as “significant evidence of terrorist financing.”

  • 20
    1

    Even though I posted the following on the other article under your response Mr. Muttukrishna Sarvananthan I am yet to see your response.

    “Pursuant to requests made by couple of professional colleagues I had contacted the CM to see whether my research institution could be of any use to the newly formed Northern Provincial Council (NPC). However, to date the CM has not reciprocated POSITIVELY.”

    Are/Were you trying to lobby the CM to favor your research institution?. Did you ask the NPC to define a project and open a tender process so that other capable institutions could submit their proposals?. If not why not?

    Why should the CM respond to you “POSITIVELY” if he perceives you as trying to exert influence that is inappropriate?.

    There is a proverb in Tamil – Soliyan Kudumbi Summa Aadathu. MS I am thoroughly disappointed that there are more to the story than you initially choose to write. The reason now you are hoping mad is very clear. I am sorry to say this brings into question your own motives.

    • 3
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      Param
      I think It is OK for you to question MS if he was lobbying the CM to favour his research although he has clearly said
      that his motive was to find out how his research organisation could be of any use to the NPC.
      But is it your right to ask MS if he expects a “POSITIVE” response from the CM.
      Don’t you think that it is a matter for the CM or his secretary to respond , unless you are also another secretary to the CM?

  • 6
    17

    Democracy is beginning to work within the Tamil polity in the north. Let the politicians and public servants be questioned and be required to answer/explain.

    I appreciate the efforts of Dr.Sarvananthan to ask questions and point out what are problems in his perceptions. I also appreciate the CM has taken the effort to reply through his personal secretary. It is for the CM to respond to respond to Dr.Sarvananthan clearly and categorically especially with respect to Nirmalan Karthikeyan.

    While this debate cannot go on for ever and ever, atleast until a clear picture emerges.

    I thank CT for providing the space for a civilized discussion and debate in the political sphere. This is a great service for the Tamils living in Sri Lanka.

    Dr.Rajasingham Narendran

    • 12
      1

      Mr Rajasingham Narendran
      Muttukrishna Sarvananthan –writting peronal vendetta about CM CV is not democracy. I challenge Muttukrishna Sarvananthan – get on the hustlings and stand for elections and contest on what ever ticket he wants for contest instead of sitting on the fence and crowing

      • 2
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        Apologies I mean Dr

      • 2
        5

        Dear Dr RN, Heretic, Gnana Sankaralingam, Naga and Rajash,

        Truth cannot be established by an election. It has to be established in court, where evidence is led and is subject to cross examination.

        The Crucial statements of DR Muthu is, one, the DIRECT challenge reiterated by him in every article that he has written to CT on this matter.

        The Private Secretary to the CM claims that my allegations are “malicious and defamatory”. I challenge the Chief Minister to take legal action against me if my claims are indeed “malicious and defamatory”

        The second crucial statement is the following

        This author was a member of the inter-agency United Nations Mission to the Eastern and Northern Provinces of Sri Lanka in November 2002 (along with Nimalan) and met with a number of government officials (both provincial and national in Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Vavuniya, Trincomalee, and Batticaloa), UN field staff (including in Kilinochchi), representatives of the local, national, and international non-governmental organisations, civil society members, and two high ranking LTTE officials in Kilinochchi; namely Pulithevan (prior to his appointment as the Secretary General of the Peace Secretariat of the LTTE) and Thuyavan (Head of Tamil Eelam Economic Development Organisation – TEEDO). This was the first time I met Nimalan. Most of the members of this inter-agency UN Mission were foreign nationals working for the UNDP and UNHCR in Geneva. The Head of the Mission was from the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery (BCPR) of the UNDP in Geneva. There were three locals representing two different UN agencies, but only Nimalan and I could understand and speak Tamil.

        I do not want to delve into the details of the meeting with the high ranking LTTE officials in Kilinochchi in this reply. But I still have the transcripts of that meeting which made me to suspect that Nimalan was a LTTE mole.

        Why is action not initiated in court by the Former Supreme Court Judge to clear his name and those of others who are involved?

        It appears they are afraid to do so. Are they afraid of the Truth with the elections looming?

        Kind Regards,
        OTC

    • 1
      8

      Dr RN,

      “Democracy is beginning to work within the Tamil polity in the north. Let the politicians and public servants be questioned and be required to answer/explain.”

      I hope that transparency arrives to the North. Even in the South the change has only started. Much more work is needed.

    • 11
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      Dear Narendran,
      From the facts presented from both sides, I can guess that this person must have expected the post of economic adviser from the Northern province chief minister, and when that was not given, has started to slander him. This reminds me of how you went behind Mainda Rajapakse praising him, and when he ignored you, started attacking him.

    • 5
      1

      Rajasingham,

      A nice try!

      After you got bashed for your gullible, unrestrained support to Muthu’s first article, now you want to hind under a virtuous “democracy” shield.

      Yes, the right to question is democratic – but that does not translate to right to slander on personnel vendetta.

      Perhaps, if Yakkady, RagaVanN, NirmalaaN use such gutter language and tactic, they can be excused or dismissed on the grounds of “guttersnipe” capabilities. But when DR. NARENDRN RAJASINGHAM alias DR.RN, and DR. SRAVAN MUTTHU resort to these cheap shots it is telling more on the institution that conferred those regrettable titles on you worthless pseudo intellects, not unlike the other title carrier DR.DJ.

      Just ask you Major Professors!

      • 1
        3

        Kumar R,

        “But when DR. NARENDRN RAJASINGHAM alias DR.RN, and DR. SRAVAN MUTTHU resort to these cheap shots it is telling more on the institution that conferred those regrettable titles on you worthless pseudo intellects, not unlike the other title carrier DR.DJ.”

        The information on their (Dr RN, Dr MS and Dr DJ) academic achievements is available on the internet. Can you please provide facts on what is wrong with their degrees and especially the institutions where they did their studies.

        “Just ask you Major Professors!”

        Do you mean the major professors of Dr RN, Dr MS and Dr DJ?

        I have a feeling that despite your perfect English you are less qualified in academic terms that the above mentioned Drs. Correct?

        As most other commentators you provide opinions instead of facts. That is easy but will never solve a dispute. Note how the response from the CM has influenced me. Now I request facts in almost all my comments.

        • 3
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          Heretic,

          “I have a feeling that despite your perfect English you are less qualified in academic terms that the above mentioned Drs. Correct? “

          Wrong!

          You wanted facts – there it is! Did that help “solve a dispute””? Or solve anything? I have no idea if you are less or more qualified – and I care a rat’s ass!

          There are educated, gullible idiots. And then there are academics who resort to prostituting their talents. Remember Rajapakse called DJ exactly that on Al Jazeera, even if not in those exact words. Remember Professor Zoltan in My Fair Lady, the Hungarian academic and his use of his talent? He may have been even more qualified than Prof Higgins, even if he was a student under him at one time. DJ, despite being a Political academic, promoted that the Sinhala army should celebrate their domination of the Tamils regardless of the humiliation, arguing that “after all, the protest against apartheid was rooted on the thirst for racial domination!” I have called him out on this and shamed him several times, no different than I shame these other less-deserving academics, less deserving either because of their gullibility despite the education, or because of their mischief in arrogant, misplaced confidence on account of their paper qualifications.

          My criticism was on the misuse of and impropriety in judgment despite those same qualifications. One would expect greater responsibility, especially when they feel the compulsion to advertise their qualifications, even when totally irrelevant to the subject discussed.

          I have already provided at your request one of Rajasingham’s silliest declarations that the Veterinary courses helped him develop superior capabilities in mind-reading that was not available for the lesser mortals. That was the explanation he provided to substantiate the unwavering confidence with which he castigated all Tamil Diaspora for not channeling their remittances to the Rajapakse regime directly, and instead continuing to support their kith and kin directly. Was he gullible? Was he unaware of the foreign exchange that was channeled to provide princely entertainment to the Rajapakse clan? Or was Rajasingham also part of that exact plan at that time? Why is it difficult for Rajasingm to be forthright on that issue related to his own relentless campaign for five years or so?

          Would you say Rajasingham reflects his intellect expected of a Ph.D when he harbours such ludicrous belief about his mind-reading expertise resulting from Vet studies?! Why would you think I need to be more qualified than him to expose him on such stupidity?

          Whichever the reason, whether gullibility or fraudulent, there is a need to keep in check these unfit pontifications that could unduly persuade the lesser-initiated readers only because of the Dr title that accompanies the authors name.

          It is sad that your comprehension led you to the conclusion that I mistrusted the qualifications they lay claim to. On the other hand, your haste in conclusions is not a surprise, as apparent from your question I cite at the beginning of this comment!

          • 0
            0

            Kumar R,

            Thank you for your reply. I am sorry to admit that I partly fail to understand you but that is not the end of the world.

            I see no need to continue repeating that all the Drs have the right to publish their opinions and you and all others have the right to disagree with them.

            “I have a feeling that despite your perfect English you are less qualified in academic terms that the above mentioned Drs. Correct? ” Wrong!

            Easy to say but do you dare to the tell us who you are?

            “You wanted facts – there it is!”

            Where?

            “Did that help “solve a dispute””? Or solve anything?”

            I fail to understand.

            “I have no idea if you are less or more qualified – and I care a rat’s ass!”

            I have never made any claims about my qualifications and don’t know why you should worry about them. Relax and don’t worry.

            Maybe I have misunderstood you but in your comment you implied that there is something wrong with the institutions where the Drs studied, their studies and asked readers to contact their major professors. Many others made similar comments without giving any facts to back their opinions.

            As I already have stated I am hoping to see more information from Dr MS and a response from the CM.

            • 2
              0

              Heretic,

              “Easy to say but do you dare to the tell us who you are? “ I did not volunteer that information – you asked for facts, specifically on comparative academic qualification, and I gave you that. If you had no intentions of trust, perhaps you should not have asked. Let me ask you in turn “do you dare to the tell us who you are”? Do you even understand why CT allows for anonymity? Do you find that concept difficult to comprehend?

              “ ‘Did that help solve a dispute? Or solve anything?’ I fail to understand.” I fully understand your challenge, as I thought was obvious from my observation on your comprehension. Perhaps, not obvious to some!

              “I have never made any claims about my qualifications and don’t know why you should worry about them. Relax and don’t worry.” How’s that?! You begin by needlessly and erroneously assuming and asking about my qualifications, and when I reluctantly respond, then you want me to establish that by daring me with some stupidity, unaware of why CT allows anonymity, a privilege that you yourself fully utilize. After all that, you have the temerity to suggest “I have never made any claims about my qualifications and don’t know why you should worry about them.” Do you not realize what a hypocrite that makes you, or what an imbecilic logic that is?!

              “ Maybe I have misunderstood you but in your comment you implied that there is something wrong with the institutions where the Drs studied.” Let me reassure you that your inference again results from nothing but a comprehension-challenge. Cleaning the lenses is not going to be much of a help on this!

              • 0
                0

                Kumar R,

                Now that the elections are over we will hopefully see how the CM and Dr MS continue their case.

                There are many questions without answers.

                • 0
                  0

                  Heretic,

                  What? — No explanation as to why it is O.K. for you to dare me to reveal my identity, but you will not do it yourself?!

                  Did I teach you something new about the privilege of anonymity – do you not at least owe me a thank you then?

                  Or perhaps an apology for that stupid dare?

                  Wouldn’t that be the honourable thing to do, rather than to slither away, cowed and unnoticed?

      • 1
        2

        Kumar R,

        I have cleaned my specs and wish to correct the following typos that might mislead you and delay your reply:

        “Can you please provide facts on what is wrong with their degrees and especially the institutions where they did their studies.”

        Can you please provide facts on what is wrong with their degrees and especially the institutions where they did their studies?

        “Do you mean the major professors of Dr RN, Dr MS and Dr DJ? I have a feeling that despite your perfect English you are less qualified in academic terms that the above mentioned Drs. Correct?”

        Do you mean the major professors of Dr RN, Dr MS and Dr DJ? I have a feeling that despite your perfect English you are less qualified in academic terms than the above mentioned Drs. Correct?

        • 2
          0

          Heretic,

          No delayat my end — as you possibly have realized by now. The minor gramatical or spelling lapses were not an issue!

  • 22
    7

    Hi Muttukrishna Sarvananthan

    Your hatred towards Karthikeyan is clearly discerble in what you have written about him in your previous piece as well as in this response to Northern NPC CM’s reply.

    I believe you are an educated guy with a PhD and a well known good governance activist in Jaffna. I am surprised that you being an educated fellow had descended to this low level of calling another educated fellow like Karthikeyan a ‘bootlicker’. I have not heard of other highly educated people stooping to such low level. Educated people always maintain a decorum and civility even when they criticize others. You are worse than even Mervyn Silva, the foul-mouthed former MP from Kelaniya.

    I do not know which University conferred the PhD degree on you. But surely you are an insult to that University. And your parents cannot be proud of you.

    You are even questioning UNDP for appointing Karthikeyan as a Deputy Project Manager. Is this not an unwarranted insinuation against a respected UN body? From your own account of Karthikeyan you say that he was appointed by UNDP before he joined TRO and later participated as an LTTE delegate during the last round of the Geneva talks. What is the evidence you have to prove that he was an LTTEer at the time he was recruited by UNDP as Deputy Project Manager? You call him an “LTTE mole” and what was the need for LTTE to place a mole at the UNDP Colombo office?

    LTTE might have recruited him to TRO probably because of his experience, expertise and his English language skills. As far I know, LTTE had always recruited talented Tamils to positions that had a public face particularly to positions that required interaction with foreigners. They also succeeded in getting the services of academics and professionals. Professor Sornarajah (formerly Professor at National University of Singapore and at the University of Colombo), former Sri Lankan Attorney General Siva Pasupathy, and Professor Ramasamy of Malaysia are among the well- known academics and luminaries who represented the interests of LTTE. There are many other Tamilian academics and professionals all over world who rallied behind LTTE despite the tainted terrorist image of LTTE. May be you have a grouse against LTTE for not recruiting you. For saying these do not think that I am pro-LTTE.

    NPC Chief Minister Justice Wigneswaran would have been impressed with the personality and professionalism of Karthikeyan to have appointed him as his advisor. You are insinuating Justice Wigneswaran by saying that he appointed Karthikeyan because he happened to be the son of a former family friend. Despite all the slips he is making in politics, Justice Wigneswaran is a man of character and one of the best Supreme Court justices Sri Lanka had in the past. Unlike some of the cronies of former CJ Sarath N Silva who now sit in the superior courts of Sri Lanka, Justice Wigneswaran was known as a competent and fearless judge.

    After writing the above, I had gone and looked at your educational credentials which make me wonder why such an educated person is stooping so low to denigrate another educated guy and freting over what the NPC Chief Minister had done or not done. It appears to me that you have written this article on NPC Chief Minister to get some two cents worth of publicity to yourself.

    With your educational background you should be doing better things man. Don’t be an insult to all the educational institutions you have listed in your footnote CV appended to your Colombo Telegraph articles. People will not honour one for his paper qualifications man. An educated man must earn the respect of others by fitting conduct. And spitting venom on a fellow human being is not the way for an educated man to earn the respects of others.

    Grow up man.

    • 11
      4

      @Naga, you have been too gentle with this clown. I too am wondering where this [Edited out] got his PhD. All he does is to criticize people who are trying to do something. What has he to show for his work except run people down. He is simply a dirty douche bag from Pt. Pedro. Please read some of the comments this low life wrote about a female tigress (The book’s name: Tamil Tigress – Niromi DeZoysa) who wrote about her own life. This fellow and another two idiots ran her to the ground for writing a book about herself – it was a memoir. He also ran a legitimate charity called the SJC 87 (St. John’s College class of 87) an LTTE proxy and slandered them to the ground until they sent a letter of warning from a lawyer in Sri-Lanka and told him to stop his nonsense or face legal consequences. No wonder we Tamils are always at the bottom. We don’t need enemies, we are there to destroy ourselves. If the Sinhalese were smart enough, they would have given ealam to the Tamils and watched from the sidelines and laughed their arses off.

      • 3
        8

        Tamil from the north,

        “I too am wondering where this [Edited out] got his PhD.”

        If you are unable to find the information on the educational background on Dr MS you maybe should not be commenting at all.

        Use your preferred search engine.

        Some years ago rural Jaffna had no or poor internet access but this excuse no longer exists.

        • 7
          2

          @Heretic, you poor soul. For your benefit, I am not from rural Jaffna nor unable to verify this jokers educational qualifications. I am not trying to verify his qualifications by any means, but expect a man who claims to hold a PhD to write with substance. I have had experience reading his comments before on another matter and his accusations are purely based on speculations and baseless. A person who claims to have such qualifications should act like one. This guy claims to have studied abroad. But his criticisms are not based on facts. They are simply from his wild imaginations created and concocted from his child like mind. Muthu is like a child with a new toy, that is his computer. He will play incessantly for a few days and then he will disappear to appear a few months down the road. He pesters people who try to do some good for others. He writes endless research papers filled with useless information, which does no good than to annoy a few folks. You tell me what good came out of this deranged fellow? Show me one thing this fellow has done which has directly benefited or impacted the people? CM Wigneswaran works day and night for the people of the north. He may not be perfect but at least he is doing something. Let me tell you one more thing, we northern Tamils have this mean habit of putting anyone who is rising above the tides with toxic words, which do no good except de-moralize people. I am being critical of Muthu because of the speculative rubbish he writes. People who criticise others should criticize based on facts not speculations.

          • 3
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            Tamil from the north, east, west south Pakistan

            “CM Wigneswaran works day and night for the people of the north.”

            He knows a criminal when he sees one, oh from miles away.

          • 3
            6

            Tamil from the north,

            Feel free to criticize Dr MS and others including me. I welcome this.

            Please allow others the opportunity to ask questions.

            As long as we accept lack of transparency, abuse of power and corruption there will be no real development and reconciliation in our country.

            • 5
              0

              @Heretic, believe it or not I am a Jaffna Tamil from Jaffna Town, not some rural village close to Jaffna. We need to ask questions, I agree with you. I did not criticize you, but you did of me. My criticisms are geared towards your reply to my comment on Muthu. I have a long history with this fool Muthu. I have seen, read and have been annoyed by his silly childish behavior for the last 5 years. If you hold a PhD, you need to write like a Phd holder, not like a kid right out of college. He is a real fake, he writes like a kid in grade 5 and his writings do not reflect what he claims to have. My first encounter with this clown is when he slandered a legitimate charity run by professionals who gave their valuable time at no cost. I know since I have been involved in the charity from a distance. The charity is called SJC 87 (St. John’s College, Jaffna class of 87). They have done tremendous amount of work in the Vanni region and a bit of help for SJC itself. He called them a LTTE proxy and slandered them to the ground. When they sent a letter of warning of a law suit from Colombo, he crawled under a rock like a snail. He went quiet to appear again with his rubbish. I am not denying CM Wigi has made mistakes, but at least this man is trying to do something. He did not kill anyone like the Rajapaksas or promote racial hatred like the TULF in the 80s and the UNP government. Give him an opportunity to do something for the people of Jaffna. Research papers based on wild imaginations don’t do anything for anyone. I live in wonderful Canada, My family and I enjoy tremendous amount of peace and quiet. You know what, I would love to see that peace and quiet in Sri Lanka as well. We Tamils are very good at being a bunch of crabs in a bucket. One tries to escape and the other will pull it back into the bucket. You may not have had a history with this [Edited out] Muthu, but I do and I know what a toxic corrosive douchebag he is. He is a chameleon, changes colour for the moment. If he is an economist, then he needs to stick to that profession and write about paddy fields and coconuts. But he has suddenly become an investigative journalist and his writings are purely based on his wild imaginations. Write facts or he needs to shut up. Other than that so far I do not have a problem with you? You can ask questions, but don’t slander an innocent person based on someone else’s speculations.

              • 1
                5

                Tamil from the north,

                “but don’t slander an innocent person based on someone else’s speculations.”

                Have I slandered? When?

                Who has been proven innocent? Where? When?

                I have only been asking for more facts.

                Dr MR has promised more details after the elections.

                If our CM does not reply to the accusations of Dr MS he might be hiding something.

                You have the right to have your opinions on Dr MS.

                • 6
                  1

                  @Heretic, here we go again. I did not say you slandered anyone. It is this douche Muthu who slandered the CM. You expect the CM to clarify Muthu’s concerns. If a wild dog barks from the wilderness, are you going to run into the jungle to see what it is barking at? The CM has a busy job, unlike Muthu. Muthu has nothing to do. He is like a kid and all excited to play for sometime. He will ask dumb questions, throw mud at people and talk some crap and then he will disappear to appear another day. Every time some idiot slanders someone, does not mean the other has to answer that!!!!!!! Maybe the CM is too busy and Muthu has too much time on his hands.

                  • 2
                    7

                    Dear TFTN,

                    Re “Maybe the CM is too busy”

                    Perhaps he was busy that may be why his private sec responded to Muthu.

                    As a former SC Judge the CM is aware of the remedy for Slander.

                    Muthu has challenged the CM to use that remedy in every article he has written but the CM is back peddling.

                    What does the CM fear? More exposure?

                    Kind Regards,
                    OTC

                    • 5
                      0

                      @Off the cuff, Muthu’s comments are not worth the salt to react!!!!!

                    • 0
                      5

                      OTC,

                      “Perhaps he was busy that may be why his private sec responded to Muthu.”

                      I hope that my following opinion is not counted as slander and malign. I have not contacted the office of the CM for a comment.

                      The simple explanation might be that the CM being a bit elderly and having had secretaries as a judge is likely to be unable to type.

                      What do you think?

                    • 0
                      5

                      Dear TFTN,

                      Re “@Off the cuff, Muthu’s comments are not worth the salt to react!!!!!”

                      Haven’t you noticed that you have already Reacted (past tense), CM Wigs has reacted through his private secretary (again past tense) and so have many others.

                      Unfortunately all of your reactions are falling way short of the target. Why is that?

                      Why did you react if Muthu’s comment’s are worthless?

                      It looks as if all of you fear Muthu and is trying your best to shut him up by other means.

                      Kind Regards,
                      OTC

                    • 0
                      4

                      Dear Heretic,

                      I think the CM is going off the rails otherwise which Supreme Court Judge who incarcerated Tamil terrorists charged under the Prevention of Terrorism Act would later do an about turn and call their leader a Great Hero?

                      “Pirapakaran oru payangaravathiyalla. Avar Thamil Inathin Viduthalikkaaha Poaradiya oru Maha Veeran”

                  • 5
                    1

                    Tamil from the north, east, west south Pakistan

                    “If a wild dog barks from the wilderness”

                    I am bit confused.

                    Are you referring to Off The Cuff?

                    • 5
                      0

                      @NV, good one. It fits OTC perfectly.

                    • 0
                      4

                      Dear Tamil Pseudo Vedda,

                      Always behind a Human Shield!!!
                      Is that a General Tamil Trait!
                      Or just a trait of a Tamil Terrorist?

                      Re “I am bit confused”

                      A bit?

                      Ha ha haa, you are always confused wisecracking idiot!

                      Are you still liking your wounds and hiding under a culvert after that exchange with Paul?

                      You got it right royally from Paul (August 4, 2015 at 1:39 pm) when you tried to use him as a cat’s paw, 6 days ago!
                      .
                      Paul said “Ah yes this is what we have come to expect from you, aimless quotes and asides. Never address the points that OTC makes. Never counter his documented and referenced allegations. Just sit at a keyboard and filibuster. You think you have convinced the readers? You have achieved nothing. As you are fond of quotes, here is one for you from Dr RN ‘I am not easily influenced by anyone, unless I am convinced by facts. OTC knows what he is talking about on the subject. Further, I like his approach. He presents his stands with references. It is for others to provide counter evidence to contest him’.”
                      .
                      Since August 6, you have been unable to counter my comment at this link. I hope you can muster the courage to come out of your culvert and contest it, instead of yapping from under it or behind a Human Shield! But I doubt you will ever try for when you did you had to tuck your tail between your legs and run, never to do so directly again.
                      .
                      https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/un-leaked-document-consumption-for-the-election-in-sri-lanka/comment-page-1/#comment-1868502
                      .
                      Come on Tamil, for once be brave.

                      Kind Regards,
                      OTC

                    • 0
                      5

                      Dear Tamil,

                      I just received Sir P Arunachelem’s writings that you sent to me by email. Thank you. You are welcome to contact me at anytime.

                      What I used in my comments was his 1922 speech posted on Sangam.org which refers to a Transnational Tamil Kingdom that included Ceylon, Tamil India and the Tamil British colonies.

                      Undoubtedly he was a great man and I respect his greatness. How he stood up for the Sinhala leaders in 1915 was outstanding and is indelibly etched in Lankan History. I as a Sinhalese am eternally grateful and have the highest regard for this selfless act risking his own life for the sake of the Sinhalese. I as a Sri Lankan is proud of his achievements.

                      But even great men have faults some minor and some major. The minor faults are of little consequence and should be ignored but the major faults such as his opposition to enfranchising the Women and the Low Cast Tamils, allowing his ultra conservative, Hindu consciousness, to impose on government decision making and his idea of Eelam were three of them that had a lasting adverse impact on Sri Lankan politics.

                      While we acknowledge the Greatness we should have the strength of character to acknowledge the weaknesses as well.

                      No matter how critical or sarcastic you are, I will enjoy the intellectual challenge of a civil debate.

                      Kind Regards,
                      OTC

                  • 2
                    4

                    Tamil from Canada,

                    “I did not say you slandered anyone.”

                    Thank you for finally making it clear. My brain is as slow as the internet connection in rural Jaffna.

                    “You expect the CM to clarify Muthu’s concerns.”
                    Yes I do. It is not only Dr MS.

                    “If a wild dog barks from the wilderness, are you going to run into the jungle to see what it is barking at?”

                    Absolutely! The dog might need help or might have found a person or animal in need of help. What kind of a person are you?

                    “The CM has a busy job, unlike Muthu. Muthu has nothing to do. He is like a kid and all excited to play for sometime. He will ask dumb questions, throw mud at people and talk some crap and then he will disappear to appear another day. Every time some idiot slanders someone, does not mean the other has to answer that!!!!!!! Maybe the CM is too busy and Muthu has too much time on his hands.”

                    Now you are giving your opinions again. I want facts.

                    • 0
                      4

                      Dear Heretic,

                      Re “Now you are giving your opinions again. I want facts.”

                      Most Tamils who ran away to Canada are Short on Facts and Long on Rhetoric.

                      There are many examples available.

                    • 0
                      3

                      Heratic,

                      “If a wild dog barks from the wilderness, are you going to run into the jungle to see what it is barking at?”

                      “Absolutely! The dog might need help or might have found a person or animal in need of help. What kind of a person are you?”

                      This Canadian Tamil was raised by a family that taught him to throw stones and spit at dogs. Their favorite past time is watching films of animal sacrifice while eating beef.

    • 11
      2

      Naga, Extremely good and sharp advice to this young man. I Totally agree with you “Illam kandru payam ariyathu”. [Young calf fears nothing] Dr MK has just demonstrated his inadequate life experience. Hope he learns. Naga, I hope Your comments would open the eyes of many who do contribute their comments to various articles on CT. Many Thanks for your courage’s and timely advice.

    • 3
      7

      Naga,

      “As far I know, LTTE had always recruited talented Tamils to positions that had a public face particularly to positions that required interaction with foreigners. They also succeeded in getting the services of academics and professionals.”

      You are correct. However we cannot forget that in Jaffna (except maybe some islands) during many years all of us were forced to cooperate to some extent with the LTTE. Some more some less. This did not exclude the well educated professionals, academics etc. The LTTE had meetings for different groups of professionals and not attending them would have been dangerous. All kinds of unions were controlled by the LTTE. I remember cases of “voluntary donation” of 2 weeks salary for some LTTE front.

      If somebody starts to examine the background of Jaffna professionals and others almost all would have participated in the activities of LTTE in some way. We all had to pay tax.

      Mr K maybe had something to do with the LTTE a long time ago but so did most others. My main interest is knowing what he is doing now and what is the connection with the CM.

      • 8
        3

        Heretic,

        After reading your sinister comments, people would seriously have second thoughts to collaborate with you.

        What is the point of managing a research institute if you cannot get along with others?

        Why do you care who the CM is meeting with and who is helping to the CM?

        Why not you write up the difficulties you face to manage an NGO in Jaffna and the current projects that are you now working on? Thanks!

        • 1
          7

          Your comment cannot be for me.

        • 5
          2

          @TA, I couldn’t have said it better. Good on you matey!!!

      • 4
        8

        Heretic,

        During the last ceasefire agreement, I had the opportunity to meet some senior members of the LTTE in Kilinochchi. On hearing of this meeting, a senior engineer, advised me to be careful. He said, ” They will call you Aiyah first, later they will call you aAnai and will finally address you as Adey”. He knew I can be quite outspoken, when provoked.

        I carried a few copies of the book ‘Wisdom of Lee Kuan Yew’ in Tamil and English for the use of LTTE seniors. When I presented the books, the person who received them at Nanthavanam, told me that their Thalaivar had read all the books! He then told me the word ‘Vaalarivu (wisdom)’ does not exist in Tamil. This made me angry. I then asked him whether he knew Thirukural. When he said yes, I recited the Thirkural,

        ” Katrathanaal ahiya payanenkol-Vaalarivan natraal tholarenil” and asked him whether he knew the meaning of Vaalarivan.

        He stopped his big talk thereafter.

        I was also given a very intrusive questionnaire to fill.I did not answer the questions that I did not like. Some questions concerned the TV stations I watch and what my sons were earning.

        Thereafter, when I met Nediyavan, he asked me whether I was contributing money to the LTTE. When I answered in the negative, he asked me whether I did not support Tamil Eelam. It was a question I did not want to answer directly, considering where I was. I however told him that although I eat chicken, I will not slaughter them. He looked at me quizzically for a few minutes and changed the subject!

        Dr.RN

      • 7
        2

        No sensible organisation or individual would associate with some one who takes such an approach of threats to release transcripts of meetings etc from an inter-agency United Nations Mission and brands a colleague the way he does many years after working together. It exposes serious ethical flows in Muttukrishna Sarvananthan. Had this individual, Muttukrishna Sarvananthan, advised his intent to use such transcripts to any other purpose than to serve the mission of the inter-agency United Nations Mission no one would have had the confidence to communicate freely to achieve the project mission. My statement is especially relevant in engagements in the context of conflict affected regions where there is a likelyhood of having to work with individuals/groups/warring factions and the like. And Muttukrishna Sarvananthan states the following on the website of his institution confirming that he indeed works in such conflict sensitive environment. (Note the from the website of the Point Pedro Institute of Development I have reproduced at the end of this comment).

        On matters of confidentiality the the UN Ethics Office clearly states the following:

        “Confidentiality and Use of Information: We should promote the spirit of openness and transparency, and be committed to fostering this spirit with our internal and external constituencies. However, not all information available to us through our work with the UN can be made public, even when it is not specifically labeled as ‘confidential’. Inappropriate disclosure or use of privileged United Nations information can harm the efficiency and credibility of the Organization and damage its ability to achieve its objectives. We must ensure that sensitive or confidential information is carefully protected in order to safeguard the interests of the Organization, our clients, partners and staff. Confidential information must never be disclosed or used improperly for personal or other private gain. The obligation to protect confidential information remains after WE (emphasis mine) separate from the Organization.” source: http://www.un.org/en/ethics/information.shtml

        Muttukrishna Sarvananthan is in violation of the UN Ethical guidelines. He is NOT reporting any misconduct. Instead he is trying to use information obtained during an inter-agency meeting which took place during an internationally backed peace process where the parties to the conflict were engaged in dialogue and the organisations and individuals were assisting parties as part of peace building and post war reconstruction rehabilitation and resettlement initiatives. All of these activities took place in an environment where the ban on LTTE was lifted in 2002 to facilitate the peace process. If I am correct the ban was not reimposed until late 2008/early 2009.

        Back to what the Point Pedro Institute of Development:

        “He has worked as a Consultant to the Ministry of Finance and Planning, various private research institutions and international consultancy firms, Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), German International Cooperation (GIZ, formerly known as GTZ), International Labour Organisation (ILO), United Nations Development Programme (UNDP – both the country office and the Asia Pacific Regional Centre Colombo), and the World Bank (IBRD) in Sri Lanka undertaking field survey-based and desk-based applied empirical research studies on contemporary economic and social issues (civil conflict, gender, international trade, labour market, local economic development, macro-economy, peace, poverty, terrorism, etc) confronting Sri Lanka and beyond, field evaluations of agriculture, small enterprise, governance, peace-building, and post-disaster projects in Sri Lanka, post-conflict/disaster needs assessments in Sri Lanka, and reviews of fiscal and monetary transparency in Sri Lanka.”

    • 12
      1

      Muttukrishna Sarvananthan:

      The only issue that I agree with you is that the CM should have stopped all connections with Premananda et al once he had been convicted of rape and murder by an Indian court.

      I do not agree with you regarding the other issues you have raised. In a way I feel you are overreacting.

    • 8
      1

      Rarely do I agree with Naga, but here I do.

    • 10
      1

      Naga

      “Educated people always maintain a decorum and civility even when they criticize others.”

      I beg to differ.

      The most people I have met in my life are those who you may brand as uneducated.

      However, irrespective of what they do for living, race, religion, region , such people as three wheel drivers, amudei wearing farmers, masons, mechanics, ………. some poor rural monks, labourers, domestic helps, ……… are more polite, helpful, civil, more compassionate, respectful, honest, willing to share, hard working, humane, ………… than the so called educated crooks, selfish members of me society, …………..

      You must look for wisdom in a person than his/her educational qualification which could deceptively sweep you away from your normal self.

    • 1
      5

      Naga,

      “As far I know, LTTE had always recruited talented Tamils to positions that had a public face particularly to positions that required interaction with foreigners. They also succeeded in getting the services of academics and professionals.”

      I forgot to mention the obvious fact that many of all backgrounds in Jaffna voluntary supported the LTTE and even took up arms. Many of them later changed their minds when they saw the reality but others did not.

      You must have heard of, for instance, D.B.S.Jeyaraj and Dr. Rajani Thiranagama.

    • 1
      4

      Dear Naga,

      I agree with you on the decorum issue

      Re “You call him an “LTTE mole” and what was the need for LTTE to place a mole at the UNDP Colombo office?”

      The reason is not yet in the public space but Dr Muthu has stated “There were three locals representing two different UN agencies, but only Nimalan and I could understand and speak Tamil. I do not want to delve into the details of the meeting with the high ranking LTTE officials in Kilinochchi in this reply. But I still have the transcripts of that meeting which made me to suspect that Nimalan was a LTTE mole”
      .
      Obviously Nimalan has discussed something with the High Ranking LTTE reps at Killi, that only Nimalan, Dr Muthu, and the LTTE understood.
      .
      The CM is afraid to take Muthu to Court despite being challenged to do so in every article written by Muthu on CT. What we have seen instead, are evasive rebuttals.
      .
      Re “Despite all the slips he is making in politics, Justice Wigneswaran is a man of character and one of the best Supreme Court justices Sri Lanka had in the past”
      .
      I too thought so and so did many Sinhalese who respected him for his forthrightness. We were happy when he was made CM, expecting his Judicial experience to tread a moderate path and lead the Tamils towards a Just and Equitable solution, the principles of Justice that he very well understood and lived by, during his tenure as a SC Judge on the Supreme Court bench.
      .
      But all that respect Vanished when Hon Chief Minister, C.V. Wigneswaran, made a Politically expedient speech at Valvettithurai (VVT), the native village of LTTE supremo, Velupillai Prabhakaran, the cradle of armed Tamil militancy.
      .
      “Pirapakaran oru payangaravathiyalla. Avar Thamil Inathin Viduthalikkaaha Poaradiya oru Maha Veeran”
      .
      Translation, “Prabhakaran is not a terrorist. He is a great hero who fought for the freedom of the Tamil people”
      .
      It is plain luck that CM Wig’s is alive today, for if he led any Tamil political party when Prabahkaran, his hero was alive, instead of safely cocooned within Sri Lanka’s Judiciary, The Hon Wigs would be 6 feet underground like Appapilai Amirthalingam is.
      .
      Kind Regards,
      OTC

  • 15
    2

    Sara was a memberof the EPDP and he wants to break up the TNA.

    • 3
      9

      Did DD tel you that or did Sara himself tell you that?
      What is the proof for your assertion?

  • 8
    1

    CM has proved that he is a judge and decided who is the fit person. He need not select any muthu, [Edited out]and not give any explanation to him.

    [Edited out]
    A Fox one day spied a beautiful bunch of ripe grapes hanging from a vine trained along the branches of a tree. The grapes seemed ready to burst with juice, and the Fox’s mouth watered as he gazed longingly at them.

    The bunch hung from a high branch, and the Fox had to jump for it. The first time he jumped he missed it by a long way. So he walked off a short distance and took a running leap at it, only to fall short once more. Again and again he tried, but in vain.

    Now he sat down and looked at the grapes in disgust.

    “What a fool I am,” he said. “Here I am wearing myself out to get a bunch of sour grapes that are not worth gaping for.”

    And off he walked very, very scornfully.

    There are many who pretend to despise and belittle that which is beyond their reach.

    • 1
      4

      ravivararo,

      “CM has proved that he is a judge and decided who is the fit person. He need not select any muthu, [Edited out]and not give any explanation to him.”

      The CM was a judge but now he is a mere politician. Because of his background the CM cannot claim not to know the law. Despite this he made a well documented attempt to restrict the Fundamental Rights of Mrs Ramesh the former Chief Secretary.

      Dr MS, OTC, Dr RN, other commentators, voters and tax payers have the right to demand answers from the CM.

      If the CM has not done anything wrong he has no problems and will answer to clear his name. If he doesn’t reply with the facts he might be hiding something.

      In his response the CM invites people to verify facts before writing “malign” articles. This invitation and promise to answer should be used to obtain the facts about who paid the traveling of the CM and Mr K. In addition he should reply, among other things, to the claims of nepotism.

      I do not have the facts but expect the CM to provide them in his future reply.

  • 7
    2

    The manner and the tone of the writing are adducible to believe whether the author is one in the ‘Fifth Column’.

  • 7
    0

    Muttu suggested that CM made some degrading / insulting comments about women in general (I do not remember his words in the previous write up).

    I asked for some references. Muttu, the Peee eHHH Deee should not have had uttered such nonsense if he had no proof.

  • 3
    5

    I find my name has been dragged into this polemics. The news that I was the vice president of World Tamil Movement is not a well kept secret. I was Vice president from 1991 but I resigned in 1999. I resigned for personal reasons not happy with the way funds are received, disbursed and accounted. It was under the control of a single individual and there was no internal control. Being a qualified Accountant that arrangement was anathema to me. Anyway, I did not wanted to make an issue of it because of the greater struggle to free our people from Sinhalese hegemony. In 2007, I was again offered the post of Vice President which I accepted. Not only me, the TNA too supported the LTTE because there was no alternative. The TNA was under leash by the LTTE and the opinion of senior parliamentary leaders were ignored or brushed aside.

    A glaring case is the refusal by the LTTE hierarchy to support Ranil Wickremesinghe despite pleadings of R.Sampanthan. The unofficial boycott enforced by the LTTE saw Rajapaksa winning the race by a razor-thin majority of only 1,842,749 votes. Looking back that was one of the fatal mistakes, albeit well intentioned, made by LTTE leader Prabhakaran. He did not or he was given bad advice about Rajapaksa who was a rabid racist ab initio. As for financing, we do during election time. But no funds have been raised by inviting NPC Councillors or Ministers. Not that we don’t like it, but it was not the case. TNA is a democratic party recognized by the global community as the authentic (nor sole) representatives of the Thamils of North and East. After the LTTE laid down their arms, it is natural I and my many friends support the TNA for the same reason. It was the logical thing to do after May 2009. Under Sampanthan leadership the TNA is now looked favourably by countries like America, India, UK, Canada and EU. This turn around was quite in contrast to the isolation of LTTE by the international community.
    Coming to Chief Minister Wigneswaran, after assuming office he pledged to run a clean administration where there will be transparency and accountability, no favouritism and certainly no nepotism. But his actions have proved him wrong. To everyone surprise Wigneswaran appointed his close relative from Colombo as his private secretary. Now he has appointed his nephew Karthikeyan Nirmalan, an Australian Citizen, to the exalted position as Diary Secretary, Executive Asst. and Advisor to the Chief Minister! Both these appointments smack of nepotism decried by the Chief Minister before. Since the appointment of Nirmalan who accompanied the Chief Minister to US and UK, Wigneswaran has moved away from the TNA. His spurious claim he wants to remain neutral is the unkindest cut at all. It was the TNA that gave him nomination and funded his campaign. He owes his office to TNA and not anyone else. And at one stage he got panicky thinking the rookie Ananthi will beat him in the race. It is not uncommon for some to kick away the ladder they used to climb, but it is certainly strange for an ex Chief Justice to do so. Because of this betrayal he has suddenly become the darling of the hard-core LTTE elements in the Diaspora. Less than two years ago these same elements were going after his throat claiming he is a Colombo Thamil, in-law of Vasudeva Nanayakkara, who is now fiercely competing with the likes of BBS Secretary Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thero, his sons married to Sinhalese women etc.
    In reply to the numerous charges levelled against Wigneswaran by Dr. Sarvananthan, there was no answer to the following by his Secretary:

    (1) Why he visited the Poopakakrishna ashram of Premananda who was found guilty of multiple counts of murder and rape and sentenced to two consecutive life imprisonments on August 20, 1997. He was also fined Indian Rs. 67.3 lakhs. Five others were given life sentences. Premananda was a copycat of Sai Baba and according to his follwers supposed to materialize sweets and fruits which would simply “appear” in his hands out of thin air! But, poor Premananda couldn’t materialize the key to his prison doors! Premananda died in prison on 21 February 2011 of acute liver failure.

    (2) Why he wrote to the Prime Minister of India pleading on behalf of co-convicts in the rape and murder of female disciples of his ashram.
    (3) Why he took part in the commemorative meeting for the late Premananda in Barnes Place, Colombo, in recently as March 2015.

    To say the least Chief Minister’s actions does not portray him in good light. And that is very unfottunate.

    • 4
      5

      It will be of interest to all Lankans as to how either CM ,or his Secretary would respond to the revelations coming form this commentator.

    • 7
      0

      Thanga of TNA Canada. What a reply.

      “I resigned for personal reasons not happy with the way funds are received, disbursed and accounted. It was under the control of a single individual and there was no internal control. Being a qualified Accountant that arrangement was anathema to me. Anyway, I did not wanted to make an issue of it because of the greater struggle to free our people from Sinhalese hegemony. In 2007, I was again offered the post of Vice President which I accepted.”

      So by 2007 the internal controls were such that you were happy to accept the job?. Yet the organization was banned and still remains the only Tamil organization to find itself on a Canadian Terrorism list. And the ban happened under your watch. Secondly let me refer to the Human Rights Watch report titled Funding the “Final War” released in March 2006. Because even after this report and its content you chose to join the organization under the same president for reasons known only to you:

      “The LTTE and groups linked to it such as the World Tamil Movement repeatedly call and visit Tamil families seeking funds. Some families have received as many as three visits in a single week. Fundraisers may refuse to leave the house without a pledge of money, and have told individuals who claim not to have funds available to borrow the money, to place contributions on their credit cards, or even to re-mortgage their homes. The individuals requesting the funds sometimes identified themselves directly as representatives of the LTTE. In other instances, they indicated that they were from the World Tamil Movement or the British Tamil Association, organizations that are widely believed to be fronts for the LTTE. Some families told Human Rights Watch that their visitors simply stated that they had been “sent by Prabhakaran” (the supreme leader of the LTTE) to collect the funds. The fundraisers usually traveled in pairs, although some sources told Human Rights Watch that they had been approached by a group of three or four representatives. Pressure is particularly intense for members of the Tamil business and professional community. Many rely on the Tamil community for a significant portion of their business and fear that if they are labeled as anti-LTTE, they will lose customers or clients. One shop owner told Human Rights Watch, “If I continue to ignore their requests, they might label me as anti-Tiger and tell people ‘don’t do business with him.'”[89] An attorney told Human Rights Watch, “Most professionals pay, because they are afraid that if they don’t, the World Tamil Movement will give them bad publicity and it will negatively affect their client base.” A firm refusal does not always guarantee that a family will be left alone, however. One Toronto Tamil was visited at his home in January 2006 by two men who identified themselves as representatives of the World Tamil Movement. When the man raised questions about the LTTE and made it clear that he did not support the LTTE, the World Tamil Movement representatives threatened him, saying “We will deal with you.” [“Neekavanamai iru. Unnai Kavanippom.Nee poorathaiparpom.”] The man said, “When you repeat this phrase to an English-speaking person, people don’t take it seriously. But for a Tamil person, the implication is that you will be killed.” source: there is a lot more here https://www.hrw.org/report/2006/03/14/funding-final-war/ltte-intimidation-and-extortion-tamil-diaspora

      Then you say ” It was the logical thing to do after May 2009″. That is to support TNA. Fine. But is that what you did?. LTTE was defeated in 2009. Yet in 2010 there was this – “Tamil community to vote on the 1976 Vaddukoddai Resolution”. And this article illustrates the rest:

      “The Resolution, passed in response to the policies of the Sinhalese-dominated Sri Lankan government, outlines the creation of an independent state for the island’s Tamil minority. Of the 50,000-strong turn out, an overwhelming 99.82 per cent voted in favour of the resolution.For the referendum’s organizers, the results underline the staunch support that “Tamil Eelam” or “Tamil sovereignty” has enjoyed in one of Canada’s most prominent immigrant communities.

      Velupillai Thangavelu, a leading member of the Coalition for Tamil Elections, was previously VP of the World Tamil Movement, outlawed by Ottawa in 2008 as a terrorist organization. According to the RCMP, the World Tamil Movement and its affiliates were actively involved in fundraising for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the secessionist guerrillas who faced the Sri Lankan military in open war from the 1970s to 2009. It is estimated that, in the latter part of the conflict, more than 50 per cent of the LTTE’s resources were procured from such supposedly unaffiliated organizations.

      “This Coalition, too, is just a front for the LTTE,” says Lenin Benedict, secretary of the Canadian Democratic Tamil Cultural Association. “Now that the Tigers have been militarily defeated in Sri Lanka and outlawed in most of North America and Western Europe, they are constantly trying to reassert themselves under different names.”
      Source: http://www.thenewspaper.ca/news/tamils-toronto/

      The above statements clearly refutes that your stance changed after 2009.

      As for financing of TNA: How is it possible that a political party in SL could be financed by foreign sources?. Did TNA Sri Lanka publish accounts to show how the funds are being used?. Given any hint of misuse would be an anathema to you could you provide links to these accounts.

      Let me touch briefly on the democratic credentials of your party given you appear to be seeking refuge in the LTTE era to ignore what is going on today where there is no LTTE. And the following reinforce my reasons to know how the funds are being used to prop up unsuitable individuals are the democratic representatives of the Tamils.

      How come your TNA man Suresh Premachadren of Mandaiyan Kulu who is a mass murderer, who terrorized my family during IPKF occupation and we had to run to the safety of Colombo, is part of the top leadership group of your so called “Democratic Party”?. You know that goon is on the ‘Persona Non Grata’ list of Canada especially after the murder of Akilan Thiruchelvam.

      The same thug and his goons were recently exchanging blows with MP Sreetharan, a close relative of LTTE commander Theepan. This Sreetharan has now hired an ex-LTTEr who was chased away from the group as his fellow election campaigner. Now that is how democracy works in your TNA. That is to sleep with tigers when it suits your political agenda then run away from them and pretend to be democrats when no longer needed. There is a difference between cheap politics and true democratic discourse.

      The former PLOTE leader Sitharthan, a kidnapper, murderer, extortionist is an NPC councilor and a junior minister as I understand. You call that democracy do you?. And this individual and his Vavuniya torture chamber were the subject of human rights reports because this goon also allegedly joined in committing war crimes at the last stages. Yes the same war crimes we are demanding justice for. Through grapevine I hear that this goon was given a place at the election because your dear leader was doing it as a favor for the support/help late Dharmalingham, who was assassinated, gave it to him during his days. So a thug was given a political seat at the expense of genuine candidates as a political favor. Now you call that democracy?. Added to that this unscrupulous militia leader has his own relative working in the NPC. And you talk of nepotism!. Dig within TNA and it is every where.

      Saravanapavan is a candidate and a TNA MP who owns a paper, in fact the main daily Uthayan. Is that democracy for you. Where is the separation between the pillars of democracy – the parliament and the media?. How can he be an MP and also the head of a newspaper?.

      Why did your dear leader donated 50 lakhs of the parliamentary allocation of a Hindu temple when thousands of Tamils whose lives were ruined by the war are still languishing in displacement camps?. Here you are bashing the followers of god men yet your own party leader is throwing money at stone statues while the living are rotting in camps. Why don’t you take a lesson from Modi – Build Toilets not temples. Temples have enough money. Such is the hypocrisy of TNA.

      When MR is a thug we rightfully bash him. When he turns democracy into a charade we rightfully condemn him. Yet when we do the same tamils take the “look over there approach” and bring in words like unity and other catch all garbage (fight against hegemony etc) to hide the truth. What we have a opportunists not democrats. That applies to TNA and a generation of political leaders and their cheerleaders. Plain opportunists.

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        DemoCrazy
        Brilliant, keep it up.Expose all the skeletons rattling in TNA’s cupboard.

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        DemoCrazy,

        Thank you.

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        Thanks. Democracy at work! I hope it will flourish in the North at least.

        More and more valid and truthful questions and questioning should haunt our politicians. They have to answer, be accountable and change. The war battered Tamils living here should know the truth and nothing but the absolute truth,

        Ranil Wickremasinghe has disclosed in a Ada Derana TV interview yesterday that VP was paid Rs200 million in 2005 and thereafter a total of Rs 2000 million until the assassination attempt on Gotabhaya! VP had demanded the same from the UNP, but was spurned. The result VP prevented the Tamils from exercising their vote and MR won.

        He had also previously accepted a monthly payment from Rajiv Gandhi-led India to adhere to the ceasefire agreement and millions + arms from Premadasa to fight the IPKF! He and his subordinates demanded millions to open the Mavilaru anicut as well!

        O’Tempora O’mores!

        These were the ethical values of our liberators that his minions yet admire.

        Such men are slinging mud (being bribed/bought by MR), shamelessly and viciously, at me and those like me, for trying to encourage MR to deal with the Tamil crisis post-war and build bridges between the feuding communities. MR did much after the war and could have done much more. I for one tried my best to get him to do more by submitting a five year program of action. He disappointed me with his major shortsighted failure to address governance related issues.

        This is the curse that yet besets our community. Condemn, damn and sling mud at those who try to solve problems and pull them down, while condoning blatant crime committed by their heroes! They want us to defend ourselves against uncommitted crimes, while turning a blind eye to those that were/ are blatantly doing so. This is the democracy they want!

        Dr.RN

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          Dr RN,

          “More and more valid and truthful questions and questioning should haunt our politicians. They have to answer, be accountable and change.”

          I hope so but I am afraid there will be no major change in the Northern MPs returned next week.

          Using the adjective of our good friend “Kumar R” this thread is stale. It might be better to continue if and when there is news from Dr MS or/and the CM.

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    Native Veda

    I wholeheartedly agree with you:

    What you need is wisdom, not qualifications.

    Most professionals are generally crooks. They usually charge exorbitant fees even for their shoddy professional services.

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    Why is there no mention of the new Hindu temples being built in the North and the East, postwar? The beautiful Murugan temple in Kakapalliya and the fantastic Radha Krishna temple in Nilaveli impressed me.

    Why is there no mention of the increasing number Buddhists, including their political leaders who visit Hindu temples in the island and in India, not mentioned? How many Hindus visit Buddhist temples?

    I was surprised that many shops in Jaffna now demand customers enter their premise barefooted. The concern that Heretic expressed about the Hinduisation of the public sphere in the North is worrying. Hinduism is quite secular in its approach. ‘Em mathamum sammatham’ (All religions are acceptable) is an inbuilt credo in Saivaism. However, in the name of Hinduism and in the Portuguese era, Catholicism, many evils have been committed in the North. Many Hindu poor and the so-called low castes have converted to evangelical Christianity to escape the clutches of the foolish, ritualistic and insensitive Hinduism practiced in the north.

    The CM should be secular in deed and appearance, while holding public office. Did he wear holy ash and pottu, while holding various offices in the the court system in Sri Lanka? Most of us disgusted with Mahinda’s antics in Buddhist temples. Our CM should avoid such a descent.

    Dr.RN

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