legally tight, trying to exclude this possibility takes us into speculating on complicated scenarios that are not remotely borne out by any evidence. It is quite possible that there were difficulties in reaching an agreement and the LTTE decided to kill Premadasa.

Moreover, it is Prabhakaran’s way to overcome an internal crisis within the LTTE by fomenting another crisis elsewhere. In 1990, Mahattaya, to strengthen his position, wanted the deal with Premadasa to go on. But Prabhakaran aborted it and started the second round of war. The time when Premadasa was killed was also the time when Prabhakaran was launching the final crackdown on Mahattaya, resulting in the latter’s torture and disappearance. A good deal had changed inside the LTTE during Babu’s long residence in Colombo. Was Babu’s position in any way affected by this?

The LTTE has never before nor afterwards used a man of Babu’s stature and experience as a suicide bomber. He was a high quality secret agent who had built up a network in Colombo and there seemed no need to throw away all this. A witness who was among those questioned by the Police gave two reasons for his scepticism about their conclusions. According to him, it was only later that the Police identified with Babu the rider who came on a bicycle and intruded into Armour Street. Earlier, he said, it was held that Babu had been with Mohideen. He also said that there were six corpses at the blast-site that had not been identified. This we have also learnt from others.

These make us alive to the possibility that there was something going on there independently of Babu, which ties up with there having been other murder conspiracies on that same day. Moreover, if Babu wanted to kill Premadasa, he could have done it on so many other occasions. The man on the bicycle had, as it were, fortuitously intruded upon Premadasa, unless he had been directed by accomplices. Babu had the credentials and contacts to have been an uncontroversial presence among Premadasa’s group. The story about Babu having come on a bicycle is, as it stands, a Police story and no more.

Now if anything were to happen to Premadasa, Babu’s position would have become very vulnerable. Some ministers close to Premadasa would have known about him, but there is nothing to suggest that they would have continued the connection in his absence. The emotional bond with Prabhakaran leading to a particular approach to the problem was Premadasa’s alone. Babu who had his ears close to the ground would have picked up ominous signals about possible attempts on Premadasa. Under these conditions, it is quite conceivable that Babu would have gone about in a suicide kit, with the intention of ending it all the moment he sensed something amiss. This may explain the known facts, taking into account the doubts and difficulties expressed, but we may never know for certain. The LTTE journal Eelanatham then published in Jaffna referred to Babu ambiguously as a ‘Thatkodayali’ rather than a ‘Thatkolayali’. The former means ‘one who gave himself’ and the latter, ‘one who killed himself’.

Further indications of Babu’s closeness to the Premadasa circle come from the nature of the Police investigation and the absence of meaningful judicial proceedings. Premadasa was gone, but then there was the question, what happens to all those in the PSD, CID, CDB and the DIG (Metropolitan) whose task it was to protect Premadasa, and whose business it was to know about Babu, and yet signally failed? The Press was periodically complaining that banned items were going to Jaffna in lorries, which were waved on at checkpoints and that huge commissions were involved. Yet nothing was done. It thus suited many in positions of power to sweep the whole matter under the carpet.

Nevertheless, there have been instances in Colombo where persons inadvertently harbouring the LTTE had their house blasted in rough justice by the security services. In the Premadasa murder, only one person – Raja – one of the most insignificant men in the Babu episode, is known to have been punished. He was in prison for 9 months, during which time he forfeited under the PTA all his property in the business jointly run by him and Babu. He came out and remained stone-broke. There was a good deal more that was swept under the carpet.

We have also received testimony, which is credible under the circumstances, that it is not difficult in that area to make contact with LTTE agents and make a deal that pays well. With the kind of influence someone like Babu was able to wield, one cannot rule out logistical help from Colombo’s underworld in the assassination by the LTTE of Ranjan Wijeratne, who was then becoming a nuisance to underworld interests.