UNCLE N POODLES KAMATHI NE

GOBI AND HIS BRIGANDS SHOT DEAD

They were leading attempts to revive LTTE with overseas based pro-Tiger Tamil diaspora

Rasika Somarathna

Three wanted criminals and hardcore LTTE cadres, including Kajeeban Ponniah Selvanayagam alias Gobi, who were leading attempts to revive the now essentially defunct LTTE with the support of the overseas based pro-Tiger Tamil diaspora were killed during a confrontation with the security forces in the jungles off Padaviya yesterday.

“Two of the dead have been identified as Sundaralingam Kajeepan alias Thevihan, and Selvanayagam Kajeepan alais Gobi. The third body is yet to be identified, but is believed to be that of Navaratnam Navaneethan alias Appan. Judicial inquiry into this incident is in progress”, Brigadier Ruwan Wanigasooriya Director / Spokesman Media Centre, Ministry of Defence and Urban Development said.

Defence authorities were on the lookout for the trio of LTTE suspects for sometime, as they had a history of having engaged in several subversive acts. The Police had announced a Rs, 1 million reward for any information that leads to their whereabouts.

Explaining the operation to arrest the three, Brigadier Wanigasooriya spoke of “an attempt for resurgence of terrorism in Sri Lanka that surfaced in the general area of Pallai in the Jaffna Peninsula. The information on several key suspects who were leading the campaign also surfaced. Investigators made several arrests that led to recovery of arms, ammunitions, explosives and other material that were in their possession. It was also revealed that this local group was functioning under the instructions of LTTE leaders Nediyawan and Vinayagam who are based in Europe.

They were preparing the ground for another armed campaign”.

Brigadier Wanigasoriya went on to say that investigators trailing these local leaders had made several arrests of second and third tier cadres and in one attempt Gobi escaped after shooting and injuring a policeman on March 13 when a team of officers swooped in on the house he was hiding.

“The volume of information that came pouring from the peace loving local public who did not approve of any attempt of resurgence of the LTTE helped investigations in a large measure. The general area where the three leaders, Thevihan, Gobi and Appan were hiding was identified.

On March 10, 2014 troops in a search operation in the jungle area off Padaviya recovered four back-packs containing rations, medicine, clothes, etc. believed to be used by the suspects.

The identified area was surrounded. In the early hours of April 11, 2014 the three armed suspects who attempted to escape the area confronted the troops in the cordon,” he added.

Brigadier Wanigasooriya explained that the immediate objectives of the local group included the recovery of ‘war like material’ dumped by the LTTE during retreat, re-establishment of LTTE intelligence network, regrouping of the potential cadre including those rehabilitated, and collecting information on potential targets including in other provinces.

He noted that investigations revealed that the funds for these activities which came from Europe were being transferred using Hawala system which is an illegal method of money transfer widely used in the subcontinent.

“It was also revealed that many safe houses, vehicles and other resources required for resurgence of the LTTE had been procured by them using this money. Three local leaders in the attempted resurgence of the LTTE were identified as Sundaralingam Kajeepan alias Thevihan (who was involved in aerial attacks on Anuradhapura Air Base and Kollonnawa Petroleum Storage in year 2007), Selvanayagam Kajeepan alias Gobi, Navarathnam Navaneethan alias Appan.