By IANS,
New Delhi : Sri Lankan minister Douglas Devananda, who was declared a proclaimed offender by a Chennai court in 1986 and is accompanying President Mahinda Rajapaksa on his India visit, said Thursday that all political leaders were pardoned as per the 1987 Sri Lanka accord. He also said he was ready to face any legal action.
“…according to the Indo-Sri Lanka agreement, they have given pardon to all leaders, all political leaders,” he told reporters here. “If there is anything legal, I am prepared to face that.”
Devananda, now minister for traditional industries and small enterprises of Sri Lanka, was declared a proclaimed offender and an absconding accused by a sessions court in Tamil Nadu over a shootout-cum-murder in Chennai in 1986. Devananda was then a member of the separatist movement Eelam People’s Revolutionary Front (EPRLF) in Sri Lanka.
Devananda’s presence in the presidential delegation has created a stir here as he was accorded treatment due to a state guest despite being a proclaimed offender.
Devananda also asserted that his visits to India were legal and he had come to India before for medical treatment.
When asked to comment on Devananda’s presence in the presidential delegation, officials pointed out that he was not on a “watch list” of those prevented from entering the country.
India had extended an invitation to President Rajapaksa on a state visit and it was his prerogative whom to bring, said officials.
A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed at the Madras High Court Wednesday seeking the arrest of Devananda in connection with the pending criminal charges.
In an interview to CNN-IBN, Devananda said: “I am not aware that I am a proclaimed offender. If informed legally about it, I will respond to the case.”
“I have been coming to India for medical and personal reasons. The Indo-Sri Lanka accord of 1987 had pardoned several Tamil Sri Lankans,” he said.