30.10.2008

The former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, Jayaram Jayalalitha has received death threats from a Canada based LTTE front organisation, Indian news sources reported citing close associates of the famed Tamil Nadu actress cum politician.

A former AIADMK Minister and close associate of Jayalalitha, Mr. Jaya Kumar, lodging a complaint yesterday(29)with the Chennai police said, a man calling himself Tamil Maindan, a functionary of the World Tamil Eelam Protection Organisation, has sent a letter of warning that Jayalalitha would be killed for opposing the banned terrorist outfit, LTTE.

"Jayalalitha would suffer the same fate as former Pakistan Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto for continuing to oppose Tamils in Sri Lanka," said the complaint. Jaya Kumar filed the complaint with Chennai Police Commissioner R Sekar, the news sources reported.

Indian news sources, citing a Chennai police official said the matter was being investigated. Meanwhile, the advocates' wing of AIADMK filed a writ in the Madras High Court seeking additional protection for Jayalalitha.

Former TN Chief Minister Jayalalitha, has been critical of the ruthless LTTE outfit and its Tamil Nadu based political fronts. Jayalalitha came out strongly against pro-LTTE protests this month in Tamil Nadu by extremist political parties seeking a bail for the LTTE in the face of defeat by the Sri Lankan security forces.

LTTE is a banned terrorist outfit in India since 1992, and its main figures Prabakaran and Pottu Amman still remains wanted for the assassination of former Indian Premier Rajiv Gandhi on 21st May, 1991.

Meanwhile, raising concerns defence observers stated that the LTTE diaspora has used Canada as a launching pad for pro-LTTE sentiments and violence despite the outfit being proscribed as an international terrorist organization in Canada since 2001.

The pro-LTTE fronts in Canada are alleged of drug and human trafficking, illegal arms dealing, extortions and other versions of anti-social violence. Despite, a string of anti-terrorist operations conducted by the Royal Canadian Mount Police (RCMP), pro-LTTE factions continue openly staging aggression against their minor counterparts in Canada.

Recently, these aggressions were taken to the cricketing fields against the champion Sri Lankan cricket team during their triumph 20-20 four nation tournament in Canada, this month.