More than 10,000 people gathered at the Kanagapuram Thuyilum Illam this evening to mark Maaveerar Naal and pay respects to those who gave their lives fighting for Tamil liberation.

Sri Lanka's minister of Megapolis and Western Development, Patali Champika Ranawaka on Monday called on the government to take legal action against Tamils commemorating fallen LTTE cadres on Tamil National Remembrance Day  (Maaveerar Naal). 

"Anyone commemorating the LTTE must be held responsible for the assassinations committed by the LTTE during the war," Mr Champika was quoted by the Colombo Gazette as saying. 

His comments come as tens of thousands of Tamils across the North-East gathered at Thuyilum Illams and memorial sites to honour Maaveerar. 

Maaveerar Naal headlines dominate Tamil newspapers in the North-East this morning.

The family members of Maaveerar were honoured during an event at Navalar Hall in Jaffna earlier today.

The function, organised by the Tamil National People's Front, saw families place garlands in remembrance of their loved once.

Theeruvil, Vadamarachchi 

Final preparations were underway this morning at Thuyilum Illams and memorial sites across the North-East ahead of commemorative events marking Tamil National Remembrance Day (Maaveerar Naal) today. 

Several people gathered outside the site of a destroyed LTTE cemetery in Kodikamam, Jaffna to commemorate the Tamil Remembrance Day.

NPC Councillor Shivajilingam led the event at the site, now occupied by a military camp.

Several soldiers were seen taking pictures of all those participating.

Sri Lankan military officers stationed in vehicles next to Koappay Thuyilum Illam photographed Tamils who had arrived to light a lamp ahead of this evening's commemoration of Tamil National Remembrance Day (Maaveerar Naal).

Students across the North-East gathered at Eastern University in Batticaloa and at the University of the Jaffna this morning to mark Maaveerar Naal. 

Maaveerar Naal commemorations started in Nallur this morning at the destroyed memorial of Lt Col Thileepan.

The sacrificial flame was lit by Jeyakumari, the mother of three martyrs and one disappeared son.

Sri Lanka’s prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has ordered the halting of work to restore destroyed Tamil cemeteries in the North-East that were initially constructed by the LTTE to remember the Tamil war dead, reports the dailymirror.lk. 

Upon orders of the prime minister, the State Minister of National Policies and Economic Affairs Niroshan Perera announced that an investigation would be launched into the matter.