US-Based Sri Lankan's Plea on LTTE Status Rejected by Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court dismissed Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran's petition challenging the LTTE's unlawful status, emphasizing judicial caution in security matters. Rudrakumaran, claiming ties to a Tamil Eelam government, argued the TGTE's peaceful cause is entangled with LTTE's legacy, yet not fully aligned, affecting the group's operations.

The Delhi High Court has flatly rejected the plea of Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran, a U.S.-based Sri Lankan, seeking a say in cases concerning the classification of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) as an unlawful entity.

Justices Pratibha M Singh and Amit Sharma delivered the verdict, emphasizing that the tribunal's judgement required no interference, citing the sensitivity surrounding national security and integrity. Rudrakumaran, who claims a leadership role in the Tamil Eelam government, argued that despite the LTTE being dismantled, the peaceful cause for Sri Lankan Tamils should continue.

The court acknowledged inputs from Tamil Nadu and other LTTE sympathizers, underscoring that justice principles were followed. The tribunal previously denied Rudrakumaran's 2019 intervention, and it recorded that the LTTE now lacks organizational form, contrasting with the TGTE's expanded but ideologically different membership.

(With inputs from agencies.)