COLOMBO: The Liberation of Tamil Eelam (LTTB) on Jan.17 confirmed that one of their top leaders, Sathasivum Knshnakumar, better known as Kittu, and eight other rebels, has been killed. Earlier, the Tigers Spokesman in Paris, Lawrence Tillakar, accused the Indian Government of deliberate lying and Said Kiltu was under arrest in New Delhi.
The nine rebels were on board the Tiger ship M.V.Ahat which was intercepted off Indian waters by the Indian Navy on Saturday. The rebels blew up the ship along with its consignment of arms, ammunition and explosives destined for the rebel Stronghold of Jaffna Peninsula.
A leader of a rival Tamil group, based in Colombo, said the LTTE radio in Jaffna Peninsula on Sunday announced that Kittu has died a ‘heroic death.” He quoted the radio saying that Kittu and seven others refused to surrender to the Indian Navy and instead blew them up along with the ship owned by the LTTE. “They have begun paying homage to him al
Ready,” the rival Tamil leader said. Military sources in the North confirmed the report and said the Radio also announced that the ship had sunk off the southern Indian coast.
The Tiger spokesman in Paris claimed that Kittu was on his way the Peninsula with a peace proposal by an unnamed western country. Analysts in Colombo believe that this could have been a ploy to put pressure on New Delhi to release him.
Kittu was the popular Jaffna Commander of the rebels from 1985 to 1987 till he was injured in a grenade attack by an unknown attacker. He was rushed to Madras for treatment and a leg was amputated. The Tigers, suspecting rival Tamil Eelam Liberation Front (TELO) of being responsible, massacred more than 250 cadres, including its leaders Sabaramam in revenge.
Many Tamils still believe that the grenade attack was ordered by Tiger supremo Velluppiliai Prabhakaran worried by his losing popularity among the one and half million Tamils in the peninsula.
Kittu, considered a moderate in the hardline Tiger leadership, built up a working relationship with the military authorities in the ~ peninsula during the time when the Tigers controlled most of the peninsula. The Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) flew Kittu to Vavuniya in Northern Sri Lanka from Madras in 1988 in an abortive peace move which collapsed when Indian troops shot dead his body guard who had gone into the Weli Oya jungles to clear the way for Kittu to meet Prabhakaran. Kittu went on a bunger crake till he was released in Madras two weeks later.
He was flown to London in 1990 for treatment to his amputated leg with the help of the Sri Lankan Government who al the time was holding peace talks with the LTTE. When fighting resumed in June 1992, Kittu became the rebel’s top fundraiser and led a rebel propaganda offensive in Europe.
He was originally based in London but shifted to Geneva following a decision by the Bush Government last year to deport him.
Article extracted from this publication >> January 22, 1993
