Annamalai Varadaraja Perumal
1st Chief Minister of North Eastern Province
In office
10 December 1988 – 10 March 1990
Preceded byOffice Created
Succeeded byOffice Abolished
Creation of province ruled illegal[1]
Personal details
BornSri Lanka
Political partyEelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front
ResidenceIndia
Alma materUniversity of Jaffna

Annamalai Varadaraja Perumal is a politician from Sri Lanka. He was the 1st and only Chief minister of the North Eastern Province, Sri Lanka.[2] He is the founder of Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (Varathar faction).[3]

Life

Varadaraja Perumal was born in Sri Lanka. His father, Annamalai was an Indian Tamil. He graduated from University of Jaffna in economics. After graduation, he worked in the same University as a lecturer. He was a student activist in Tamil United Liberation Front. In 1979, he co-founded Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF). Initially EPRLF was a radical outfit that had the People's Liberation Army as its military wing, and was headed by Douglas Devananda.[4] He was arrested for his association with the outfit but he escaped from jail during 1983 Batticaloa Jailbreak, along with other inmates.[5] In a discrete attempt to enhance Indian hegemony by the Rajiv Gandhi administration, under the pretext of ending Sri Lankan civil war, the Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord was signed. Therefore, Northern and the Eastern provinces merged into the North Eastern Province. EPRLF and some other radical groups entered into mainstream politics and the elections were conducted for the newly created provincial council. EPRLF and its allies won the election with the help of Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF). Perumal became chief minister on 10 December 1988.[6]

As the Chief Minister, Perumal created the Citizen Volunteer Force (CVF) which later known as Tamil National Army[4] to enforce law and order in the province. CVF consisted of ex cadres of PLOTE and TELO, trained by Indian government.[2] Perumal said that the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) would not be needed in the province.[7] On 1 March 1990, when India was ready to withdraw their forces, Perumal put forward a 19 point demand list to resolve the conflict and threatened to pass a resolution in the council to declare independence for Eelam if the demands were not met.[2] After his demand, Sri Lankan government dissolved the provincial council and imposed the direct rule on it.[8] After the failed attempt, Perumal self-exiled to India.[2] Perumal opposed LTTE and its leader V. Prabhakaran.[9] LTTE called him as a traitor and tried to kill him.[10]

Further reading

References

  1. ^ "North-East merger illegal:SC". LankaNewspapers.com. 17 October 2006. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d S. H. Hasbullah; Barrie M. Morrison (2004). Sri Lankan Society in an Era of Globalization: Struggling To Create A New Social Order. SAGE Publications. p. 47. ISBN 978-0-7619-3221-5.
  3. ^ D. B. S. Jeyaraj (5 July 2003). "The killing spree". Frontline. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
  4. ^ a b "Remembering the sacrifices made to protect 13A". Ceylon Today. 2 July 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
  5. ^ Christina S. Furtado (2007). Inter-rebel Group Dynamics: Cooperation Or Competition. The Case of South Asia. ProQuest. p. 84. ISBN 978-0-549-34002-7.
  6. ^ S. H. Hasbullah; Barrie M. Morrison (30 August 2004). Sri Lankan Society in an Era of Globalization: Struggling To Create A New Social Order. SAGE Publications. p. 47. ISBN 978-0-7619-3221-5.
  7. ^ "An unparalleled folly". The Island. 31 January 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
  8. ^ "Voting in the Northern Provincial Council Tomorrow: A historic Occasion". Asian Tribune. 20 September 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
  9. ^ "Prabhakaran has left behind a fragmented society". Business Standard. 19 May 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2014.
  10. ^ "LTTE was trying to kidnap Lankan Tamil leader". Rediff. 18 January 2008. Retrieved 5 January 2014.

External links

Sri Lankan Chief Ministers
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