Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) held a meeting on 28th December in Vavuniya at a private resort where the party resolved the leadership decisions.
This meeting, which is being chaired by C.V.K. Sivagnanam, was also attended by secretary P. Sathiyalingam, Members of Parliament S. Sritharan, R. Shanakiyan, T. Raviharan, G. Srineshan, former Members of Parliament M.A. Sumanthiran, S. Yogeswaran, S. Sivamohan, Shanthi Sriskantharajah, T. Kalaiyarasan, Charles Nirmalanathan and others. However, Mavai Senathirajah did not participate, according to reporters on the scene.
The members of the ITAK party held a banner outside and requested that those attending the meeting read the banner before proceeding. The banner consisted of demands such as reconsider the court cases, organize general assembly immediately, accept that the central committee does not have the authority to immediately expel anyone, including the chairman, according to the agreement allow the election commission appointed by the general assembly in 2019 to function and refrain from actions that undermine the Tamil nation due to the weak decisions of the central committee.
While speaking to the media, Sumanthiran explained, “There were discussions regarding the resignation of the current party leader, Mavai Senathirajah, and a document signed by 18 members was submitted, requesting that he step down in the best interests of the party.”
Sumanthiran emphasized that previous practices, such as Senathirajah’s appointment as Chairman of the Political Committee by R. Sampanthan when he took over leadership, influenced this choice.
Meanwhile, Dr. S. Sivamohan, the former Vanni Member of Parliament and a central committee member of the ITAK party, stated, “No one has the authority to remove the leader from the party. I have directly recorded this and have walked away from the party today.”
After that, an unanimous decision was made to ensure clarity and unity within the party. Finally, the party decided on a consensus-based resolution. Mavai Senathirajah will continue as the Chairman of the Political Committee, a key role focused on strategic decision-making for the party. Meanwhile, in accordance with the party’s constitution, C.V.K. Sivagnanam, the Senior Vice President of ITAK, will take over as Acting Leader for the remainder of the leadership term.
