Tamil Affairs

Tamil News

Latest news from and about the homeland

A New Year celebration titled the ‘Tamil-Sinhala New Year,’ organised by the Umanthava Buddhist Village and the Sri Sathagam Ashram group, was held in Neduntheevu on Monday, raising concerns over the growing Sinhala-Buddhist presence and cultural encroachment in the Tamil homeland. The event took place at Maviddapuram Roman Catholic School in Neduntheevu (Delft Island), with around 350 Tamil…

Sri Lankan PM's security detail violate Hindu temple's rules

Sri Lankan Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya’s security detail violated regulations of the Maviddapuram Kandaswamy Hindu temple during her visit on Friday, 11 April. This occurred during the temple’s first Kumbabishekam (inauguration) pooja as some of her aides and Sri Lankan military personnel in combat gear entered the temple's hallowed precincts - it is mandatory for all males to remove upper body garments and for everyone to go barefoot.

ITAK acting leader slams ministers’ ‘colonial mindset’ during Northern visits

ITAK's acting leader c.v.k. sivagnanam criticised visiting politicians for their colonial attitude towards the north and condemned election campaigns held in temple premises as violations of electoral norms

Sri Lankan police officer accused of threatening stone quarry operator in Vavuniya

The Omanthai Police officer-in-charge has been accused of threatening a quarry operator in Vavuniya over the procurement of quarry dust without receipts, with a video of the incident circulating on social media.

Protest against illegal vihara highlights ongoing sinhalisation and land grabs in Tamil homeland

Tamil landowners in Thaiyiddy protested on 12th April against the illegal construction of a Buddhist vihara on their private lands, highlighting ongoing concerns over Sinhalisation and land encroachment

Keppapulavu demonstrators submit formal request for land release under military occupation

Keppapulavu residents from Mullaitivu staged a protest demanding immediate release of lands still under military control

India-Sri Lanka rail link may be revived with renewed Pamban Bridge

Pamban Bridge

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the newly reconstructed Pamban Rail Bridge on 6 April 2025, reviving long-standing proposals to re-establish direct transport links between India and Sri Lanka via the Palk Strait.

The vertical-lift bridge replaces the 110-year-old structure that once supported rail and ferry links from Chennai to Colombo via Dhanushkodi and Thalaimannar. These links were disrupted following the 1964 cyclone, which devastated Dhanushkodi and halted all ferry services—none of which have resumed since.

'Bharathanatyam is a way to stay connected to your roots' - Interview with Usha Jey

Shortly before her performance at the V&A Museum, Tamil Guardian sat down with dancer and choreographer Usha Jey to discuss her artistic journey so far. 

Test - A T20 at best

Producer turned director, S. Sashikanth makes his directorial debut with the psychological thriller ‘Test,’ a tale of three people whose lives intertwine during an international test cricket match: Saravanan (R Madhavan) a middle class husband struggling to get his hydro-fuel energy project on board with the relevant authorities, his wife Kumudha (Nayanthara) in hopes to obtain IVF treatment to get pregnant, and Arjun (Siddharth), a cricket player pressured to retire due to his declining form in the last two seasons. 

Harini Amarasuriya’s hypocrisy on justice for the disappeared

In 2024, Harini Amarasuriya – then an opposition parliamentarian – lauded the Tamil mothers of the disappeared.

“The women in this country, particularly those affected by the civil war, have repeatedly expressed what they want,” she said