Tissa Vihara The racists are Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam, his grandfather G G Ponnambalam & his father Kumar Ponnambalam not the Sinhalese
On 6 February 2025 abusing parliamentary privileges Gajendra Ponnambalam representing the TNPF eloquently uttered falsehoods while Parliament sat & listened primarily due to their own ignorance of history & facts. Leaving aside the string of falsehoods that were uttered, not one MP chose to even interrupt & defend the Sinhalese against the charge of “racism” hurled upon them. In times where misinformation, disinformation & “fact checkers” jump to defend the guilty, it becomes a grueling task to present the facts to those willing to accept facts.
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How many are aware of G G Ponnambalam? He formed the All Ceylon Tamil Congress in August 1944 (4 years before independence).
https://elections.gov.lk/web/wp-content/uploads/pdf/pol_party_list/Constitution/01_01_Ahila%20Ilankai%20Thamil%20Congress.pdf The Election Commission has only the Tamil version of its constitution & though RTI requests for English translations have been made they have failed to do so.
When G G Ponnambalam requested 50-50 representation the British Governor Lord Soulbury refused request claiming it was a mockery of democracy when an ethnic group before 18% sought 50% representation in par with an ethnic group that was over 70%. The 50-50 demand highlights the selfish nature of Tamil separatism & racism.
The ACTC joined ITAK in 1971 to form Tamil United Front which became TULF in 1976.
ACTC was also part of the LTTE-backed TNA & contested in 2001 & 2004 under TNA umbrella. ACTC left TNA after LTTE was defeated & grandson Gajendra formed TNPF in 2010.
An interesting event took place in 1988 when LTTE boats attempted an unsuccessful coup in Maldives. The response to this by Kumar Ponnambalam as per then media was to happily declare “we have got a Tamil state of our own”. The thinking of separatists is highlighted once more.
G G Ponnambalam passed away in 1977 while his Kumar Ponnambalam was assassinated by the LTTE on 5 January 2000.
What everyone must bear in mind is that the quest for a separate Tamil only state was sought not by LTTE but by the Tamil politicians far before even independence. These were all Tamils that belonged to the Malabars of India’s souther coast. When looking at the present Greater Eelam quest, we should compare this to the Malabar-political demands from 50-50, to Tamil Nation by ITAK, to calls to take up arms in 1976 to armed Tamil militancy that was launched with Indian assistance & resulted in 30 years of terror till they were militarily defeated in May 2009.
People must be intelligent enough to join the dots & the demands.
Taking what is not theirs, demanding what is not theirs, destroying what is not theirs appears to run in their DNA.
Similarly, the supporters of this grandson, joined by groups of other vandals forcibly entered the ancient Vaddamana Pabbatha vihara and destroyed the Buddhist heritage while installing a shiva lingam as a symbolic gesture that the Buddhist heritage site now belonged to Malabar Hindus.
Historical data by Western colonials that referred to settler colonization schemes launched by them bringing Malabars from South India to settle in Sri Lanka while pushing the Sinhalese out of North & East suffices to question the ground on which present day Tamil politicians are claiming North & East as “theirs”. Their roots will only take them back to Malabar Coast.
The present debate surrounding Tissa Raja Maha Vihara reveals that the lands belonging to the temple were larger than what is available at present as the British had destroyed Buddhist shrines and had given the lands to Malabars from India while building 300 hindu temples.
According to the 1956 Survey Department map, the temple had 20 acres.
In 1958, the Sinhalese were drive out of North by racist Tamil extremists leaving the temple & temple lands neglected and full of shrubs.
The Town Plan of 1971 re-established Tissa Vihara had 14 acres 5.79 perches.
In 2024 area had been re-surveyed & the 14 acres belonging to the temple had been re-confirmed by the survey department.
The MP hiding behind parliamentary privileges claims the lands are “private” but his claims of these lands being “private” are purely based on “declaration deeds” which are not valid or legal.
This is a good opportunity for these deeds to be taken & investigated by the CID & other relevant authorities for fraud & legal steps must be taken against those presenting falsified declaration deeds.
Thus, what can be seen & should be understood by all is that the claims to private lands are all based on bogus “declaration deeds” and wild allegations in parliament while using social media outlets to spread lies.
Theft of lands fraudulently cannot & should not be taken lightly as the issue has gone out of hand & legal measures must be taken for the theft of temple lands in the North & East & lands that belong to the Sinhalese in the past.
The MP also made unfair claims against the armed forces & it must be corrected that the armed forces have never plundered any lands but the armed forces have been faciiating bogus reconciliation drives spearheaded by numerous governments simply to please certain quarters that enjoy blowing steam to scare governments into bowing down to their demands. The armed forces has no authority to be handing over lands to anyone at the behest of governments.
The All Ceylon Buddhist Congress has correctly presented the legal position regarding the land to the Jaffna District Secretary & the Valikaman Divisional Secretary regarding the ongoing situation.
What has to be reiterated is that lands belonging to the Buddha Sasana cannot be alienated for any reason & no government cowing to foreign governments or foreign envoys using bogus reconciliation has any right to give away Buddha Sasana lands. If people have been wrongfully settled in lands belonging to the Temple, the government must take action to resettle the people in lands that are not contentiousl
The vandalism and extremism against Sinhala Buddhist heritage sites in the North is nothing anyone can deny or negate.
On 20 July 1983 then Minister Cyril Mathew presented with photos the vandalism & destruction by Tamil racists to Buddhist shrines in the North & East of Sri Lanka to UNESCO.
Prior to this the 1978 Sansoni Commission report is another example of setting the story straight & correcting the lies of Tamil politicians like Ponnambalam.
The Commission recommended to the government to protect Buddhist shrines due to the attempts to destroy them in the North & East while further recommending that measures be taken to protect the Buddhist pilgrims visiting North & East.
For the Commission headed by Justice Sansoni to make such recommendations proves that intentional & premeditated destruction of Buddhist sites had been taking place for decades. Have governments followed this recommendation?
Hiding behind parliamentary privileges MP Ponnambalam has recently been involved in attempting to chase away Sinhalese living in Divulapatana, in Batticoloa district. Having been involved in such racism, he has the audacity to call others racists.
What is obviously clear is that the racism that prevailed in his grandfather & father is definitely running in his veins. Such people are quick to call others “racist” to hide their own racism which is why he is pointing fingers at the head of the ACBC Mr. Chandra Nimal Wakista & hurling abuse at him.
It is for the people to identify the true racists & put facts in proper perspective.
Shenali D Waduge
