Students at the University of Jaffna paid tribute to those who gave their lives to the Tamil liberation struggle today, despite a ban imposed by the Jaffna Magistrate Court on Maaveerar Naal commemorations.
Students gathered at the memorial situated inside the university campus, bent onto their knees and laid flowers beneath it. Their tribute comes after the Jaffna Magistrate Court imposed a ban on the commemoration of Maaveerar Naal by members of the University of Jaffna, following an injunction filed by Kopay police.
Amongst those mentioned in the ban include the President and the Secretary of the Jaffna Students Union and members of the college administration. Locals also reported an increased Sri Lankan security presence around the university.
The memorial at the university has previously been vandalised and has been refurbished in recent years.
The plaque on the memorial reads,
“Oh you who sacrificed your precious lives
For our country’s dawn of freedom”