Chelvanayakam statue decapitated in Trincomalee

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 01 November 2011, 00:14 GMT]
The statue of Thanthai Chelva (SJV Chelvanayakam) located near the Sivan Temple at Thirugnaanasampanthar Street in Trincomalee was decapitated on Sunday night. People who were enraged to notice the desecration on Monday morning placed a cloth on the headless statue. Local people suspect genocidal elements occupying Trincomalee for timing the act, when the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) team led by Mr. R. Sampanthan, MP for Trincomalee, is on an international visit seeking solutions for the national question of Eezham Tamils. The statue is located in a recently Sinhalicised part of the Trincomalee city.

The occupying SL military has razed down all traces of the memorials including burials of the Eezham Tamil war heroes, while grand memorials were built for the genocidal SL military and the Indian ‘Peace Keeping’ Force (IPKF).

The desecration of the legacy of the Tamil struggle has now been extended even to the memorials of the leaders of non-violent struggle, civil activists in Trincomalee commented.

Residents of Sivan Koayil area had seen the chopped head of the Chelva’ statue at the feet of the statue Monday morning.

The memorial was destroyed once before allegedly by the occupying SL military and was reconstructed later.

The entire Tamil population was shocked to see the head of the late Tamil leader S.J.V.Chelvanayakam was chopped off from the statue erected at Thanthai Chelva Memorial at Thirugnanasampanthar Road in the heart of Trincomalee city Sunday night.

Thanthai Chelva’s birthday in April this year was observed by garlanding the statue at the memorial by former Trincomalee district parliamentarian K.Thurairatnasingham, UC Chairman S.Selvarajah and Vice Chairman S.Sriskandarajah.