The occupying Sri Lankan police force in Valvettithurai have summoned the brother of T Suthendraraja alias Santhan and to warn him of possible arrest under Sri Lanka’s Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) if memorial banners marking Santhan’s second death anniversary on 28 February are not removed.
The warning comes as relatives, local residents and Tamil activists gathered at Ellangkulam to mark the second remembrance anniversary of Santhan’s death.
Santhan, who had been accused in the assassination case of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and sentenced to life imprisonment, was later released by order of the Supreme Court of India. He died in February 2024 in a Chennai hospital, just days before he was due to return to the Tamil homeland and reunite with his family for the first time in decades.
According to Indian reports at the time, Santhan suffered a cardiac arrest after battling severe illness, including cryptogenic cirrhosis. He had spent more than 30 years in prison and detention following his conviction. Although acquitted in November 2022 along with six others in the Rajiv Gandhi case, he was subsequently held in a foreigners’ detention centre in Trichy for over a year. His health deteriorated during this period.
In the weeks before his death, Indian authorities had issued emergency travel documentation to facilitate his return to Jaffna. His mother, who had not seen him in over 30 years, had repeatedly appealed for his repatriation as his condition worsened. He passed away on 28 February 2024 before he could return home alive.
This week’s commemoration took place at his memorial site in the Hindu cremation grounds at Ellangkulam. The observance commenced at 9.00 a.m. in what participants described as a solemn and emotionally charged gathering.
Floral tributes were first offered by his mother, who garlanded his portrait. Family members and others then paid their respects with flowers and silent homage.
Among those present were his relatives, local residents of Valvettithurai, representatives of civic organisations, the Secretary of the Valvai Citizens’ Committee N. Anandarajah, Crusaders for Democracy Party leader S. Vendan, former cadres and Tamil activists.
Despite the peaceful nature of the event, police intervention ahead of the anniversary has raised concerns among residents. The summoning of Santhan’s brother and the warning of possible arrest under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) over memorial banners has been viewed as part of a broader pattern of surveillance and intimidation in the Tamil homeland.
The PTA has long been criticised by Eelam Tamils as a tool of state repression, enabling arrest and detention without charge. In recent weeks, protests across the North-East have called for the repeal of the Act and the withdrawal of proposed new security legislation intended to replace it.
