Responding to a letter by Sri Lankan Police warning of deaths threats against the Tamil presidential candidate Pakkiyaselvam Ariyanenthiran, Tamil lawmaker MA Sumanthiran lashed out against the police and called on Ariyanenthiran to step down from his campaign.
The letter by the police makes reference to objections to his candidates by prominent members within the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) including MA Sumanthiran and Shanakiyan Rasamanickam. In addressing the letter, Sumanthiran stressed that he has “never supported violence” and viewed “this election as anti-war politics”.
He further slammed the Sri Lankan Police’s Deputy Inspector General claiming that he was under the direct control of Sri Lanka’s president Ranil Wickremesinghe. He further noted that the Inspector General’s assertion that there was rising support for Ariyanenthiran amounted to an election crime and that he is taking legal action by raising the matter with Sri Lanka’s election commission. Sumanthiran claimed that Tamil public organisations were overly reliant on information from the Sri Lankan security forces.
Addressing Ariyanenthiran campaign, he claimed that ITAK’s central committee did not support his candidacy and encouraged Ariyanenthiran to step down. "Do not vote for the Tamil common candidate," Sumanthiran urged. "The party has resolved that he should withdraw from the race." He further warned of disciplinary against Ariyanenthiran for contesting the election as a “Tamil common candidate”.
Expressing his support for Sajith Premadasa in the Sri Lankan presidential polls, Sumanthiran said that Premadasa offered pragmatic proposals that the Tamil community could work with. This decision, however, has deepened the crisis within the party, with different factions backing opposing sides.
Read more here: ITAK in disarray as senior leaders continue to divide party
Despite the internal political discord, Ariyanenthiran appears to have garned significant support and helf his final rally in Nallur, Jaffna, before the election's silence period. During this time, rallies and door-to-door canvassing are prohibited.
