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SLA gunfire injures elderly man

[TamilNet, Thursday, 26 January 2006, 14:47 GMT]
Sri Lanka Army (SLA) soldiers on foot patrol shot and injured Velupillai Nagarajah, 70, along A9 road in Madathady area in Chavakacheri Thursday morning, sources from Thenmaradchy said. SLA spokesperson said that an SLA trooper's gun had fired accidentally wounding the elderly Tamil man.

SLA troopers were providing escort to an SLA mobile convoy when the incident happened.

Mr Nagarajah is from Allarai North in Kodikamam.

Nagarajah was admitted to Chavakachcheri Government Hospital and was later transferred to Jaffna Teaching Hospital for treatment to his gunshot wounds. His condition is not life threatening, medical sources said.

Recently, in a similar incident where a retired Post Master was killed of SLA gunfire in Point Pedro which the SLA claimed was accidental, later investigations by the NorthEast Secretariat on Human Rights (NESOHR) revealed that the killing was not accidental.

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