A Tamil rapper from Kilinochchi has been arrested and remanded under Sri Lanka's Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) after sharing videos of a musical performance on social media, in a move that has sparked concern amongst Tamils and renewed criticism of the state's treatment of Tamil cultural expression.
The artist, Sangeethsan Ganeskumar better known by his stage name Hiphop Sangee, was arrested by Sri Lankan authorities following an investigation into videos he uploaded after performing at a temple festival event in the Chavakachcheri area of Jaffna.
According to police, the 24-year-old resident of Udayanagar, Kilinochchi, performed at a musical event held in Navatkuli on 31 May. Investigators from the Jaffna Divisional Criminal Investigation Bureau allege that he later edited four songs from the performance and uploaded them to his TikTok account in a manner that portrayed them as “supporting or glorifying” the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).
He was subsequently arrested by officers attached to the District Crime Prevention Division and handed over to the occupying Chavakachcheri Police Station.
The singer was produced before court together with his mobile phone and charged under Section 03(g) of the Prevention of Terrorism Act No. 48 of 1978.
Following proceedings, the court ordered that he be remanded until 17 June.
The video is still available to view on his Instagram account below.
See a translation of the lyrics to the music in the video below:
(We) gave a small fox a place inside the lion's den.
(We) lost the right of the land of pure Tamil.In a the surge of emotion (awakening), the Tamil state will rise;
The war has begun — beat the drum!Mother Tamil, our life herself,
Protector of our homeland,
(You) who live on as the light,
O imperishable warriors/tigers,
O sandalwood caskets.Entering the battlefield,
The tiger-warrior who fought,
Tamil blood that seethes,
Charging forth along the path of the king.Burnt homes and shattered lives
Still speak in a silent language;
Tamil Eelam bears the legacy of the leader
Who charged forward with fury.On soil that reeks of blood,
Even a child is a warrior there.
Yet here,
On the night when the sound of shellfire echoed,
Dreams dissolved within our hearts,
Yet remains in our eyes.A history of giving one's life
To defend the homeland
Further investigations are being conducted jointly by the Jaffna Divisional Criminal Investigation Bureau and the occupying police in Chavakachcheri.
According to local reports, Ganeskumar had performed devotional songs and South Indian film songs during the temple festival. He later edited footage from the event by adding a previously recorded rap song from his own musical repertoire before sharing the videos online.
The videos subsequently attracted significant attention on Sinhala social media, where many users reportedly subjected the singer to intense criticism and racially charged abuse.
His arrest comes amid increasing scrutiny by the Sri Lankan authorities of songs, performances and artistic works associated with the Tamil homeland and the Tamil liberation struggle.
Over recent weeks, videos of homeland-themed songs performed at temple festivals, musical concerts and traditional drum performances across Jaffna have circulated widely online. In response, the occupying Sri Lankan police force has reportedly intensified investigations into performers and organisers connected to such events.
Last week, two individuals, including Gokulan, the son of the late and celebrated Tamil musician S. G. Santhan, were summoned to the Kopay Police Station and questioned over songs performed during a musical event in Urumpirai.
Video footage from that event showed police officers interrupting a performance after objecting to the content of a song linked to the Tamil homeland.
Those questioned by police maintained that not all songs produced in the Tamil homeland during the armed conflict were connected to the LTTE. They argued that the period also produced love songs, devotional songs and works reflecting the grief, displacement and suffering experienced by war-affected Tamils.
The latest arrest has reignited concerns amongst artists and rights advocates over the continued criminalisation of Tamil cultural expression.
For decades, music has served as a powerful means through which Eelam Tamils have documented loss, remembrance, displacement, resistance and collective identity. Many homeland-themed songs focus on lived experiences, cultural memory and emotional attachment to place rather than direct advocacy of violence.
Critics argue that interpreting artistic works through an overly broad security lens risks conflating cultural expression with criminal activity and further shrinking space for free expression in the Tamil homeland.
The use of the PTA in this case is also likely to attract scrutiny. The legislation, long criticised by international human rights organisations, has repeatedly been used against Tamils and has been accused of facilitating arbitrary detention and suppressing political dissent.
More than seventeen years after the end of the armed conflict, Tamil writers, musicians and artists continue to face surveillance and questioning over works connected to the history, memory and experiences of the Tamil nation.
