2 arrested in Velanai

[TamilNet, Saturday, 21 February 1998, 23:59 GMT]
A priest and a bus driver from the island of Punguduthivu off the Jaffna peninsula were detained by the SLA on Thursday said sources in Jaffna. The army in Velanai had asked both of them to report to its camp.

The driver, Balasubramaniam Vaakeeswaran, 27, is the father of three children and the priest, Srinivaasa Iyer Arunothaya Sarma, 21, is attached to the Punguduthivu Sivan temple.

Both had reported to the Velanai camp with their parents on Thursday morning.

The army had detained them and issued their parents with the mandatory receipt that the two had been arrested under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).

The parents of the priest and the driver have reported the matter to the Human Rights Commission office in Jaffna.

Sources said that the army had been tipped off that both were helping the Liberation Tigers who are present in part of the island.