Court orders resettlement of 3000 IDP families in Valikaamam North

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 11 March 2008, 11:46 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Supreme Court Monday ordered Sri Lanka Government officials to expedite resettlement of first batch of three thousand families displaced from Valikaamam North in Jaffna district in their own lands, after a two member-committee comprising a representative nominated by the Jaffna High Court and a nominee of the Defense Ministry had scrutinized their applications and submitted their report to the Court, legal sources in Colombo said.



Three-member bench of the Supreme Court comprising Chief Justice Sarath Silva, Nihal Gamini Amaratunge and Jagath Balapattebendige issued the directive when the Fundamental Rights violation petition filed by Mr. Mavai Senathiraja, Jaffna district parliamentarian and two farmers Kaasipillai and Yogeswaran came up for further inquiry on Monday, legal sources said.

State Counsel Ratnathilake representing the Attorney General submitted to court that that the Jaffna Government Agent had certified that three thousand displaced families from lands in Valikaamam North that come under the high security zone are qualified to be resettled.

The Government Agent had forwarded his report to the Attorney General after going through all deeds of the displaced.

Applications of six thousand more families seeking resettlement are being under investigation by the Jaffna district secretariat, counsel for the petitioners submitted to court.

President Counsel K.Kanag Easwaran with senior counsel V.S.Ganeshalingam and M.A.Sumendran appeared for Mr.Mavai Senathiraja. Senior Counsel Appathurai Vinayagamoorthy with Counsel Thanabalasingham Janakan appeared for other two petitioners.