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How could you be so proud of killing a man while he was a sleep?

He and his wife are NHS GPs with the Enfield Primary Care Trust. They live in a large refurbished house with a swimming pool. He drives a silver Mercedes, she a silver Porsche, but they also have a maroon Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit and matching four-wheel drive

You sound like the Sinhala majority who kidnap, steal and murder Tamils and try to blame it on the LTTE.

You can look forward to it soon in a military base near you.

Who killed Tamil leader Ananda Kumarswami?

He and his wife are NHS GPs with the Enfield Primary Care Trust. They live in a large refurbished house with a swimming pool. He drives a silver Mercedes, she a silver Porsche, but they also have a maroon Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit and matching four-wheel drive

Who killed Tamil leader Ananda Kumarswami?
I think he died in his old age :(

What are you hoping LTTE to get for you?

The arrest, detention, interrogation, duress, coercion, mental torture and criminal misappropriation of property suffered by a London based Sri Lankan Tamil Rajasingham Jeyadevan at the hands of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has exposed several fault lines of an organization claiming to fight for Tamil liberation. The pain and agony undergone by this British resident in the Wanni is all the more pathetic because Jeyadevan was a man who supported the LTTE wholeheartedly in the past and was never found wanting in espousing the Tamil cause. The Rajasingham Jeyadevan affair with its ramifications is indicative of the once proud Tamil liberation struggle deteriorating into opportunistic mafia like gangsterism.

''Will you come into my parlour'' said the spider to the fly in the nursery rhyme. Grown up, mature, man of the world types are enticed into the tiger lair in the Wanni through attractive incentives. Once in tiger clutches they are helpless victims as the felines 'play' around with them as cats do to mice in their paws. Jeyadevan was incarcerated and held incommincado by the tigers from Jan 8th till March 9th. While suffering mental torture he was not allowed to communicate with his family in London. His father in law passed away in London from a massive heart attack after hearing about the shocking plight of his son in law. The LTTE did not release Jeyadevan even then. Finally appropriate pressure exerted by British authorities on the LTTE succeeded in getting the man released last Wednesday at 2:30 pm.

49 year old Jeyadevan is an accountant by profession. Though a staunch supporter of the Tigers in Britain the independent firebrand had fallen foul of LTTE bigwigs in Britain and had been sidelined during recent times from the organizations activities in London. This had not dampened his spirits and Jeyadevan continued in his own way to serve the Tamil cause and community in Britain.

He had pioneered many Tamil oriented projects in the past. Among these was the Eelap Patheeswarar Sivan temple of which he was the managing trustee. Another of his projects was the Tamil Community Housing Association. Jeyadeva was working full time as its director until recently. Though a diehard LTTE supporter Jeyadevan was viewed by the tiger leadership in Britain as an 'enemy'. The LTTE infiltrated the Housing Association board and got Jeyadevan's services terminated. He has filed legal action in this matter.

The tigers were also keen on getting Jeyadevan out of the temple management. The LTTE has been eying hindu temples in North - East Sri Lanka and abroad for quite some time now as a perennial cash cow. Almost all temples earning reasonable revenue through devotee donations are now paying a regular levy to the LTTE in Sri Lanka. The amount differs according to the revenue generating capacity of each temple.

Most Sri Lankan Tamil managed Hindu temples abroad are paying a levy too. In some cases tiger stooges have taken over the temple management through fair and foul means. There has been resistance to these moves in the case of some temples resulting in even overt violence and covert intimidation. Ironically some temple managements resisting tiger machinations are LTTE supporters too. They object to LTTE interfering in religion and also to their being ousted from temple control. On the other hand some of the outwardly pro-tiger people trying to wrest control of temples in the name of the LTTE are neither 'true' tigers nor 'pious' Hindus. It is very often a tussle for power, position, prestige and of course profit.

Jeyadevan was the pivotal force in establishing the Eelap Patheeswarar Sivan temple in 2000 at Ealing Road in Alperton, Wembley, Middlesex. It was he who had insisted on the 'Eela' to be included in the official name as a sign of Eelam patriotism. The temple had become quite popular over the years in spite of 17 Sri Lankan Tamil owned Hindu places of worship existing in Britain. By this time Jeyadevan was out of the LTTE loop in London due to various reasons. He put all his input into developing this temple while claiming to be a tiger supporter despite the London LTTE hierarchy being estranged from him.

With the Eelap Patheeswarar temple becoming a successful temple the LTTE tried hard to gain control but Jeyadevan with his purported authentic tiger credentials stood firm. Usually the tigers brand anyone they dont like or who holds a different opinion or displays some independence as 'traitor' and vilify him. They could not do that in the case of Jeyadevan because of his track record. Many people recognized that the attempts to infiltrate the temple and oust Jeyadevan was nothing but a profit - motivated exercise for power that had nothing to do with Tamil liberation.

The LTTE did manage to get hold of at least one temple trustee named Sivarajah but found others backing up Jeyadevan solidly. Most of them were ardent tiger supporters but were opposed to these insidious moves. Finding that this kind of 'paruppu' (lentil) will not boil in this type of 'thanneer'(water) the London tigers changed tactics. Instead of blowing hot they started blowing cool. Two persons 'Bala' Master and 'Paambu' Ajith started cultivating Jeyadevan.

Sudharsan alias 'Bala' master was a German citizen involved in tiger fund raising there. He had got into some difficulty and was asked to come over to the 'Wanni'. It is said that after some punishment he was rehabilitated. Bala master then moved to London and began collecting money for the LTTE. 'Paambu' (Snake) Ajith was a former bodyguard of tiger leader Velupillai Pirapakaran who came over to Britain with Sathasivampillai Krishnakumar alias Kittu in 1989. It was suspected then that he had been sent to monitor the erstwhile Jaffna LTTE commanders movements.
Paambu Ajith and Bala master convinced Jeyadevan that the problems he had with the London LTTE was basically 'local' and had nothing to do with the LTTE hierarchy in the Wanni. The tiger leadership there was very much appreciative of Jeyadevans patriotism and service to the community. The LTTE supremo himself wanted to meet Jeyadevan personally and iron out differences. If Jeyadevan met the 'Sungod' personally all his London-centered problems would vanish like the morning dew in sunshine they promised. He could return to London restored to former glory and put all his opponents in their places they suggested. Jeyadevan did not merely nibble the bait but swallowed it fully hook, line and sinker!

He made arrangements to go to the Wanni in late December. Jeyadevan was to take with him about 8500 pound sterling to be donated on behalf of the temple to the Navam Arivukkoodam. This is a rehabilitation project for maimed tigers run in the name of Lt. Col Navam who sacrificed his life voluntarily to save Pirapakaran during the IPKF days in the Wanni. Navam a youth of up country Tamil origin was himself without a whole arm but managed very efficiently and effectively. Jeyadevan was scheduled to reach Colombo on Dec 27th.

The tsunami on Dec 26th did not change his plans but Jeyadevan made a special arrangement on behalf of the temple for tsunami relief. It was announced that the temple collection on Jan 1st would be donated in full to tsunami relief. Jeyadevan proceeded as planned to Colombo on Dec 27th and stayed with his sister in law. The Ealing road temple collected over 15,000 pounds on new year day. Another trustee and secretary to the temple board Vivekanandan took this money and reached Colombo on Jan 3rd of this year.

Both Jeyadevan and Vivekanandan are close friends and firm supporters of the LTTE. While Jeyadevan is a British permanent resident but holding a Sri Lankan passport Vivekanandan is a British citizen. He works as a sales assistant. Jeyadevan and Vivekanandan reached Kilinochchi on Jan 8th morning and met the LTTE official in charge of overseas tiger branches Veerakathi Manivannan alias Castro. He is a native of Poligandy and an old student of Hartley College, Point Pedro.

Injured in the Elephant pass battle of 1991 Castro is paralysed and confined to a wheel chair. His role has increased in scope and power after the 2002 ceasefire. The supervisory role of chief procurer KP has been done away with and Castro is now in sole charge. He exercises control over overseas branches directly through phone, fax, e - mail and personal courier. Castro has removed many old hands and packed the tiger offices with his own lackeys.

In typical LTTE duplicity Jeyadevan and Vivekanandan were welcomed profusely. The money they took was handed over officially to the LTTE in two ceremonies where former LTTE international spokesperson and current Tamil Rehabilitation Organization planning director Lawrence Christie (thilagar) was present. After a sumptuous lunch both were told that Pirapakaran is awaiting them and led to a vehicle. They were blindfolded for security purposes - they were told - as the LTTE leaders whereabouts were top secret. Thrilled at the prospect of seeing their 'Sooriyadevan' face to face and being blinded by his dazzle the unsuspecting men sped along blindfolded into the trap.

Instead of the supremos abode they were taken to what seemed an old , virtually deserted house. They were locked up in fortified, darkened rooms. They were kept in solitary confinement. They were periodically taken out for 'interrogation'. Made to sleep on the bare floor they were plagued by rodents and insects. Rats, cockroaches, red ants, white ants, lizards, centipedes and scorpions were abundant in the darkened room. Vivekanandan a vegetarian from childhood was horrified when he saw two dead mice floating in the earthen jar from which he was drinking water. Later a nephew of Vivekanandan working in the LTTE medical unit stood guarantee for his uncle and got Vivekanandan out. He had to present himself regularly for interrogation but Jeyadevan the chief target languished in the 'prison'.

The interrogation was spearheaded by Castro himself. Jeyadevan was shown a 'petition' signed by three people. One was Sivarajah from the temple trust. The other two were Navanayagam and Ramaraj from the housing association. Castro told him that the petition was handed over to him personally by a London based businessman Mathanarajan. It soon became obvious that the LTTE's objective was to pressurise Jeyadevan into transferring control of his money spinning temple to other tiger agents in London. The 'gentle' Vivekanandan cracked soon and was willing to relinquish control but Jeyadevan was made of sterner stuff. After weeks he too gave in.

So Vivekanandan was given power of attorney through a document purportedly drafted by a London solicitor. Another deed also drafted in London transferred ownership and control of the Eeelap Patheeswarar temple to the Sivayogam trust in Tooting, London. This trust originally set up in the name of Sri Lankan Tamil sage Yogar Swamigal was now controlled by Nagendran Seevaratnam on behalf of the LTTE.

In another bizarre twist Seevaratnam happened to be married to Jeyadevans younger sister. Since that marriage itself was amid controversial circumstances both Seevaratnam and Jeyadevan were estranged and were not on speaking terms. Vivekanandan returned to London with necessary documentation to transfer temple control to Seevaratnam.

The fall and rise of Seevaratnam in LTTE circles makes an interesting study. This native of Myliddy is an accountant too. While working in Nigeria he accompanied Kumaran Pathmanathan alias KP of the LTTE on a fund raising campaign in Africa. KP too is from Myliddy. Later Seevaratnam went on a fund raising campaign to the US for the specific purpose of buying anti-aircraft missiles. While Seevaratnams family was in India the man moved to London. He started the English fortnightly 'Tamil Voice International' in London to compete with the independent 'Tamil Times'.

This was during the IPKF period. Anton Balasingham the LTTE political adviser also returned to London during this period. Soon there was an undeclared battle between Balasingham and Seevaratnam to be numero uno tiger in the UK. The famous intra-tiger London battle between 'Sinna' Kugan and 'Periya' Kugan in those days was actually a proxy war between Bala and Seeva. This was resolved when Pirapakaran removed both the kugans and appointed Segar as London chief. Segar is the brother of 'ideas' Vasu, James and Sundari all of them LTTE leaders who died in the conflict.

Seevaratnam also organized two international conferences in London during 1988 and 1989. This writer too presented a paper at the 1989 Conference. Some of the attendees were AP Venkateshwaran, P Upendra, S. Unnikrishnan, NVN Somu, Aaladi Aruna, Prof. AJ Wilson, Samantha Datta Ray, Viduthalai Veeramani etc. When Kittu took over in London he found the TVI magazine a heavy drain on the tiger purse, He also found Seevaratnams accounts flawed. Moreover Seevaratnam was involved romantically with a TVI employee who was half his age while his wife and family remained in Chennai.

The puritanical Praba wanted Seevaratnam out because of this. While Kittu was planning to get Seeva out the TVI made a great blunder. Jeya Wilson the former Oxford Union President and Prof. AJ Wilsons niece was then writing an 'ask Rani' column for the TVI. Instigated by Seevaratnam a question was posed in the magazine whether Balasingham had a Ph D. She answered with substantiated facts that he did not have one. Until that time everyone was addressing Bala as 'Dr Bala'. The myth was blown ironically enough in a tiger journal. This was enough pretext for Kittu. The TVI was stopped and Seevaratnam put in cold storage.

Subsequently Seevaratnam obtained a divorce and married the girl with whom he had a liaison. She was none other than Jeyadevans sister. There was no love lost between the brothers in law. While Seevaratnam went off the tiger radar in London the stock of Jeyadevan was rising high in British Tamil circles. Apart from the Wembley temple Jeyadevan was also a founding member of the International Federation of Tamils, The Confederation of Tamils, the Tamil refugee action council, the Tamil Community Housing association, the Kingsbury Tamil school etc. He was also the administrator of the LTTE English journal 'The Tamil Guardian'. Jeyadevan was then the virtual head of the LTTE supporters in Britain.

Jeyadevan was also active in Labour party politics. Till he moved recently to Millhill he was an active member of the party in Brent North. Jeyadevan was closely associated with the sitting MP Barry Gardiner. It was Jeyadevan who was responsible for getting Gardiner involved in Sri Lankan Tamil affairs. The tiger activist enjoyed personal rapport with many Labour MP's and has organized several conferences, mass meetings, processions and demonstrations in Britain with these politicos in attendance.

Jeyadevan has also contested local authority elections on the Labour party ticket in the 2002 poll he contested Edgware in North - West London and got 897 votes.
The family members of Jeyadevan were Tamil nationalists in Jaffna itself. His father Rajasingham was a well - known writer. Their house in Temple road, Nallur 'Kanthan Karunai' was a tiger base in the eighties. The family moved to Navatkuli where Jeyadevans mother and a younger brother were shot by the Indian Army. His elder brother Dr. Narendran went public with what happened and in an open letter and provided full details of that atrocity. It is said that Jeyadevan became a full fledged tiger supporter after that tragedy.

Jeyadevan was of great service to Anton and Adele Balasingham when the couple left Sri Lanka in 1999 and were stranded in South East Asia without passports or visas. It was Jeyadevan who used his 'pull' with the British establishment and got new passports and other documents for both. They were able to relocate to London and obtain medical treatment mainly due to Jeyadevans efforts.

Relations between Balasingham and Jeyadevan soured as the latter being a 'Vanangaamudi' (unbowed head) refused to be a sycophant of Bala 'Annai'. It is also well - known that Balasingham wants to be the solitary 'moon' reflecting the 'Sun' Pirapakarans lustre and ruthlessly cuts down any potential rival cut down to size. Another problem was that the scrupulously honest Jeyadevan was having friction with AC Shanthan the LTTE man in charge of finances in London. Balasingham and Shanthan however got on famously.

Around this time occurred another incident that shocked Tamil circles in London.The British Government was about to pass the Anti-Terrorism Act. Jeyadevan and another lawyer Neminathan wanted to challenge that law and ban on LTTE legally. But unknown to them Balasingham had made a clandestine deal with the British authorities. There would be no crackdown on the LTTE in Britain if the tigers closed down their offices including the international secretariat formally and adopted a low key presence. The tigers should not contest the anti - terrorism law or ban. Balasingham fearful of being targeted first if London did come down hard on the tigers agreed to play along.

Jeyadeva and others went ahead with their plans. This put Balasingham in a fix. He intervened and asked Jeyadevan to stop the legal challenge plan without divulging the real reasons. This resulted in an intense argument. Balasingham began scolding Jeyadevan in filth. Shocked beyond belief Jeyadevan responded by drafting a letter outlining what had happened including Balasinghams recourse to profanity. He circulated it among Tamil circles in Britain, Europe and also sent it to the Wanni. No action was taken against Balasingham but LTTE circles abroad particularly the educated professionals were aghast at the ideologues conduct. Balasingham was furious and began blacklisting Jeyadevan from LTTE activity. He was aided by Shanthan in this.

The next twist in this sordid game of byzantine (or should we say Thamilian?) intrigue was Seevaratnam coming out of the woodwork to patch up with Balasingham. Both forgot their old enmity and closed ranks against their common foe Jeyadevan in true 'Panchathanthra' style. Balasingham needed a counterfoil to Jeyadevan. Seevaratnam wanted rehabilitation and also an opportunity to avenge himself against his brother in law who had hurt him immeasurably in personal relations.

Seevaratnam also had a close relationship with Castro who was at one time tipped to be his future son in law. With Castro gaining greater power over all overseas branches after the ceasefire and mending fences with Balasingham Seevaratnam was now on the ascendant and getting ready to take on Jeyadevan. This led to the next round of intra-tiger strife in London.

Seevaratnam took control of the Tooting based Sivayogam trust and set up the Muthumaariyamman temple. Authorised by Castro and backed by Balasingham he began intimidating other Tamil managed projects into accepting his authority. Among these was the well established Tamil school run by Dr. Nithianandan in Wembley. Seevaratnams priority target however was the Alperton Siva temple for monetary and personal reasons.

Finding Jeyadevan a tough opponent his enemies changed course. The crocodile is strong in water but weak on land. So croc hunters entice it to land by tying up dogs on the bank. Canine flesh is a favourite delicacy of the crocodile. Likewise Jeyadevans enemies succeeded in getting him way from London where he was strong into the Wanni where he was weak. The bait was a prospective 'Dharshan' with the divine leader and a possible opportunity of being restored to his former position in London tiger circles. This was how Jeyadevan got bamboozled!

Vivekanandan was told by Castro personally that the temple should be transferred to Seevaratnam. As soon as that was done Jeyadevan would be released. No one should talk about this matter or complain to authorities. If that were done Jeyadevan will not be released. Vive returned to London with the documents.

He met other trustees like Koneswaran and Sounthararajan and informed them of the position. The trustees agreed to give up the temple so that Jeyadevan could be return safely to Britain. Vivek also talked to Jeyadevans wife Manchuladevi on the telephone and told her of the position but assured her that Jeyadevan would be release once the temple was transferred to Seeva. So Seevaratnam was asked to come over.

He promptly did so with a solicitor accompanying him and walked in with a swagger to the Alperton temple. The trustees placed their signatures and formally handed the temple over. Seevaratnam left with the sneering remark that he would be back tomorrow to take possession. When asked about Jeyadevan he replied non-committally: ''I dont know. You all inform Castro that you have transferred temple ownership to me and see what happens''.

Vivekanandan who was also the trustee telephoned Castro and informed him of the transfer. But Castro shocked him into silence by saying that the inquiry into Jeyadevans conduct on the basis of the petition submitted by the London based trio was not over yet. 'We have to see whether he is guilty or not. There are so many allegations of financial impropriety and ethical misconduct. If he is found guilty then he will undergo punishment here. Do not bother us with Jeyadevans matter hereafter we will take care of it'.

The LTTE once again was at its duplicitous worst. Promising Jeyadevans release the temple had been taken over but now Castro was reengaging on his pledge. Too dazed by this tiger treachery to even speak the spiritual Vivekanandan put down the telephone. He went off into self-imposed seclusion not daring or wanting to speak to anyone.

Worried about the situation Manchuladevis aged father Ponniah Markandu came over to meet Vivekanandan. Unable to lie or cover up Vivekanandan came out with the whole truth about Jeyadevan's situation. A shocked Markandu broke the news to his daughter. Deeply troubled by the plight of his son in law the old man suffered a massive heart attack a few hours later and passed away on March 3rd. The LTTE at 'Nanthavanam' office in Kilinochchi was informed and entreated to release Jeyadevan to attend the funeral. The tigers refused to do so.

It was at this stage that housewife Manchuladevi plucked up enough courage or worked up ample anger to go to the Police. Hard as it may be to believe neither family nor friends had gone to the Police earlier. This was due to many reasons. Chief among them was the fear of provoking the tigers into harming Jeyadevan. Besides they had been devout tiger supporters throughout and one does not complain about ones 'gods' to others easily.

Until Vivekanandan returned the actual situation about Jeyadevan was not known. All that the family knew was that he was last seen going to meet the LTTE leader. The family through several contacts had asked the Wanni tigers for more information. They were told that he was safe and that he would return soon safely. The family and relatives were asked to keep quiet without creating a fuss as the LTTE does not like that and Jeyadevan may be jeopardised.

With her husband incarcerated and her father dead Manchuladevi formally lodged a complaint to the British police on March 4th. Jeyadevan and Manchuladevi though living in England for two decades were only permanent residents. They had very recently applied for citizenship. But their three children aged 18 and 14 (twins) were British subjects. So the worried children too formally complained. The Police told her to give them five days time.

Members of the family had been disappointed with the British High Commission in Colombo. The BHC had been very indifferent to Jeyadevans plight allegedly taking up the position that he was carrying a Sri Lankan passport. The relatives feel that British diplomats in Colombo who are often visiting the Wanni and trying to curry favour with the LTTE may have been hesitant to ruffle tiger feelings by raising the Jeyadevan issue with Kilinochchi.

Jeyadevans elder brother Dr. Narendran now in the middle-east also got into the act and used his considerable influence to get the sibling released. A brother in law from North America Thevathasan also went to Colombo and work from that end. Through the help of concerned third parties several tiger leaders like Thamilselvan, Soosai, Balakumar, Nadesan etc were contacted. They promised to look into the matter but nothing happened. Castro became inaccessible. Shanthan, Balasingham, Seevaratnam etc washed their hands off saying it was a matter for Castro to decide.

The bulk of Tamil media in London too refused to publicise the issue. Even the supposedly independent 'Theepam' TV remained silent. Only the Tamil Broadcasting Corporation run by ENDLF stalwart Ramarajan highlighted the issue through several broadcasts. This created a stir among London Tamils. Many could not believe that the tigers were doing this to a man like Jeyadevan who had identified with the LTTE cause for so long.

The family and friends also sought Brent North MP Barry Gardiners help. Gardiner proved a true friend. While being reluctant to confront the LTTE openly Gardiner used all his clout to get the authorities working. Gardiner was immensely helpful to Jeyadevan once to get the Balasinghams into Britain. Now he was involved in getting Jeyadevan from LTTE clutches.

A public petition to the Foreign office was drafted by a Tamil lawyer on a humanitarian basis. The Norwegian Embassy in London too was pressurised. Ironically many Tamils coming to Jeyadevans aid were those dubbed as traitors by Jeyadevan himself. All the pseudo patriotic Tamils were silent. With the ruling Labour party moving in quietly but effectively things began to hum.

The Alperton temple itself was housed in a building that was formerly a Labour party office. Jeyadevan had personally leased it. Seevaratnam had lost no time in establishing his writ and had repainted the old sign with Sivayogam trust. He had also summarily fired eight employees including the Brahmin priests. Now the landlord egged on by some powerful forces went to the 'new' temple owners and warned them that their possession was illegal as the temple could not be sub-leased and that they were trespassing. The sacked employees began resorting to legal action.

Vivekanandan was grilled by a special unit at Scotland Yard for four hours. With a definite case being established ''other'' British authorities got into the act. On Mar 8th British intelligence officials 'invited' Balasingham for a ''tea and biscuits'' meeting. It was then suggested to him ''unofficially'' that it would be in the best interests of the LTTE and Balasingham himself to ensure the immediate release of Jeyadevan. It was hinted that British ''weather'' could turn ''nasty'' if Jeyadevan did not return safely.

Bala Annai took the hint. It is presumed that he was on the phone with his beloved ''Thamby'' Velupillai Pirapakaran informing him of the situation. Each LTTE sectional or divisional leader is 'God' in the ara under purview. But the supreme leader is the all-powerful God. So the LTTE supremo pulled rank with Castro and ordered him to release Jeyadevan. After 59 days of incarceration Jeyadevan was brought to the ''Nandavanam'' office on March 9th and released officially at 2:30 pm.

It was apparent that some physical force too had been used in the interrogation. In an exhibition of crass hypocrisy the tigers bade a ''tearful'' farewell publicly and in voices choked with ''emotion'' asked Jeyadevan to visit again with his family. Privately he was advised to keep a low profile and keep mum about his experience in tigerland. Jeyadevan returned to Colombo and stayed at an undisclosed location for two days before boarding a plane for Britain on 11th evening. The family was quite nervous as they feared a tiger squad in Colombo might just ''abduct'' him to prevent his talking.

This then is the tragic tale of Jeyadevan. He was luckier than most in getting released. Many others are in the realm of the missing still. The Jeyadevan affair has exposed all the duplicitous nature of the LTTE in several dimensions. It also throws light on what many Tamil expatriates are undergoing at the hands of the LTTE. The Jeyadevan affair also illustrates the ''intermestic'' state of the LTTE and the relationship betwen the Wanni and the Diaspora. Above all it shows that the so called Liberation movement is now akin to the mafia making ''offers hard to refuse''. This mafia like control is all the more frightening when one recalls that Mafia origins were in the Sicilian freedom movement.

With the safe release and return of Rajasingham Jeyaevan a tremendous burden is placed upon him. He has been exposed to the real nature of the LTTE. If he is genuinely concerned about the future of the Tamil people then it is his duty to resist the tiger terror to the best of his ability. This could commence with exposure of the LTTE in the same way that his family exposed the IPKF in the past. He also has a duty to fight legally against those who conspired to deprive him of temple control through duress.

There is also another course open to him. He could like many tiger victims keep silent and go on as if nothing has happened. He could start another temple instead of reclaiming the misappropriated one. Worse still he could even go along as a tiger fellow traveller and growl menacingly against all those who rushed to his aid calling them traitors. Of course all these could be purportedly justified in the name of the ''larger picture'' and safety of his family. Personally I have heard that he is a courageous honourable person with a great deal of integrity. Lonely and difficult as it may be there is only one path to be followed for such persons. I am hopeful that Rajasingham Jeyadevan will - in the words of Spike Lee - do the right thing!

Who killed Tamil leader Ananda Kumarswami?
I think he died in his old age :(