The head of the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) may be called in for questioning by the Sri Lankan security forces, after Colombo decided to reopen investigations into the killing of Tamil journalist Dharmeratnam ‘Taraki’ Sivaram.
According to reports, PLOTE leader and former Tamil parliamentarian Dharmalingam Siddarthan may be called in for questioning over the 2005 abduction and murder of Sivaram.
Sivaram, popularly known under his nom-de-plume Taraki, was abducted in front of Bambalipitiya police station in Colombo on April 28 and was found dead several hours later in a high security zone in Sri Lanka's capital, which at the time had a heavy police and military presence due to the ongoing conflict. His killers, highly suspected to be linked to the government of then-president Chandrika Kumaratunga, were never caught.
Soon after the murder, the former military wing leader of PLOTE, Arumugam Sriskandarajan, also known as Peter, was arrested after he was found in possession of the SIM card from Sivaram’s mobile phone. At the time, Sri Lankan police also said they had found a vehicle that may have been used in his abduction.
Sriskandarajah was eventually released on bail and the case against him repeatedly delayed. Sri Lankan authorities are thought to have repeatedly covered up evidence.
To date, no one has been held accountable for the murder.
Siddarthan is the current head of PLOTE having held the position since 1989. The group is a breakaway faction from the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), that went on to function as a pro-government paramilitary organisation and is accused of carrying out several human rights violations. After the Mullivaikkal genocide in 2009, PLOTE went on to join the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) with Siddarthan elected to the Northern Provincial Council in 2013 and then as a MP in 2015, on the TNA ticket.
