JVP dissident leader, woman activist abducted, says party

The leader of the JVP dissident group and a key activist of the party have gone missing on the eve of the launch of their new party amidst claims they have been abducted.

JVP dissident leader Premakumar Gunaratnam and party activist Dimuthu Atygalle were reportedly abducted by unknown groups.

Members of the dissident group said the two activists had been abducted by members of the security forces in a bid to sabotage tomorrow’s inaugural convention of their Frontline Socialist Party (FSP).

But, the Police denied the claims.

Mr. Gunaratnam and Ms. Attygalle have both been reported missing after they left a meeting at Madiwela to discuss details of the upcoming convention.

“Our meeting ended around 6.30 p.m. Both of them left the meeting

Continued from Page 1 together. Mr. Gunaratnam left in a vehicle along with a party activist who is also his bodyguard. They were going to his residence at Kiribathgoda. Ms. Atygalle had boarded a bus to go to her home in Thalawathugoda,” FSP activist Senadheera Gunatillake said.

He said Ms. Atygalle had last spoken to another party member around 8.30 p.m. and had not been heard of since.

The party activist said Mr. Gunaratnam had been dropped off at his residence at Kiribathgoda where he lived alone. His bodyguard had left him there and left the premises. When he returned to pick Mr. Gunaratnam around 6.30 a.m. the next morning, he had found the tyres of the vehicle deflated and the back door broken open. The house had been ransacked and there were signs of a struggle. Mr. Gunaratnam was missing. The Inspector General of Police, the Kiribathgdoa and Piliyandala Police have been informed of the alleged abductions, Mr. Gunatillake said.

“These abductions are politically motivated. There were attempts to stop our convention previously. Mr. Gunaratnam’s wife was questioned at the airport when she was leaving the country for Australia a few months ago and ever since the CID has been trailing him,” Mr. Gunatillake said.

Police spokesman Ajith Rohana said no such complaints had been lodged with the Police and no such persons had been taken by the CID or any other police unit.

Lalith Weeraraj and Kugan Muruganathan, two activists of the same party, were abducted in Jaffna several months ago and are still missing.