Mr Wigneswaran warned the Tamil student community that circulation of drugs was an attempt to ensure that they “should not excel in their studies, have no

The Sri Lankan government is unlikely to return thousands of acres of private Tamil land to their owners before the parliamentary elections, as it could damage the campaign of the current government led by President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Returning land held by the military to Tamils is “fraught with great political risk”, The New Indian Express quoted a “highly placed source”.

Meanwhile, resettlement minister DM Swaminathan told the paper he was optimistic the government would return land to Tamils.

“We may or may not get all the 18,000 acres we want now, but we are optimistic. This is because President Sirisena, Prime Minister Wickremesinghe and former President Chandrika Kumaratunga (who heads the Taskforce on Reconciliation), are genuinely interested in giving back lands seized from the Tamils,” he said.

Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa said he suspects a return of the LTTE, while speaking at a rally after a Buddhist ceremony in Anuradhapura.

The Chief Prelate of the Asgiriya Chapter, Galagama Attadasi Thera warned that the government must be wise in responding to Tamil demands of de-militarising the North-East and ensure that Sri Lanka remains united under one flag.

Sri Lanka “belongs to the Sinhalese” said the leader of Buddhist nationalist organisation Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), in an interview to the BBC this week.

The Sri Lankan navy organised a medical camp for Tamil civilians in the northern town of Karainagar, reported Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence.

Stating that the camp was of great benefit to the people in Kayts, the MoD went on to say it was organised by the navy “as a part of its social responsibility of looking after the people in the islands who always seek the assistance of the Navy for their day -to-day activities”.

Police in Jaffna have been accused of negligence in the case of murdered schoolgirl S. Vithiya.

Vithiya’s parents attempted to report her missing at the Kurikattuvan police checkpoint but were turned away. They later filed a report at Kayts police station, but police there were reportedly disinterested, saying Vithiya had likely run away with someone.

Accused Sri Lankan war criminal Major General Jagath Dias, Commander of the Security Force Headquarters in Mullaitivu left his post this month, with a grand send off from over 2,500 troops and a Buddhist ceremony. 

The commander, who was in command of the Sri Lankan army’s 57th division and is suspected to be directly responsible and hold command responsibility for mass atrocities committed by his troops during the final phase of the armed conflict, is being promoted to the post of Chief of Staff.

The Sri Lankan army reported that in addition to the formal military ceremony, the major general had a religious ceremony conducted by a monk at a Buddhist vihara in the district, “in order to invoke blessings on the outgoing Mullaittivu Commander… with the participation of all officers and other ranks.”

The Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) general secretary Douglas Devananda denied allegations that his party was connected to the rape and murder of a school girl in Punkuduthivu.

Rejecting the allegations, Devananda said that his party members were constantly blamed for the murders that were taking place in the North-East, reports Ceylon Today.

“Those political parties who are against us are slinging mud at us to tarnish our political identity. These allegations are levelled against the party by our political opponents to stigmatise our image by connecting the gang rape and brutal murder to us,” said the EPDP general secretary. 

The leader of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) M Karunanidhi said that the Tamil homeland continues to be occupied by Sri Lankan troops despite the change of government on the island earlier this year.

Accusing the Sri Lankan government of not “having the will” to meet Tamil demands, Mr Wigneswaran said,

The Sri Lankan military held two workshops in Kilinochchi this month to teach and “enlighten” both Tamil students and farmers about telecommunications and solar power.

Troops from the 9 Sri Lanka Signal Corps (SLSC) and 7 Sri Lanka Artillery (SLA) reportedly took the lead in arranging the entire exhibition” on telecommunications for Kilinochchi schoolchildren, earlier this month.

The Sri Lankan army stated that there were “more than 300 students with the blessings of Major General Sudantha Ranasinghe, Commander, SFHQ-KLN.”