The Deputy Inspector General of Police for the Jaffna District has written to the Jaffna Municipal Council instructing it to immediately remove what he described as unauthorised structures at the Thileepan memorial in Nallur, the Daily Mirror reported on Saturday.
The memorial stands on Nallur Back Road, on land belonging to a temple. It commemorates Thileepan, who died following a hunger strike.
According to the report, the land has been leased to the Jaffna Municipal Council on a long-term basis. The Deputy DIG stated in his letter that the memorial structures had been erected without obtaining the necessary approval from the Municipal Council.
He further claimed the structure could evoke memories of the war among the public and undermine reconciliation between ethnic communities. Citing those concerns, he instructed the council to demolish and remove the structures immediately.
Background
The site has been contested before. In September, police entered the same Nallur memorial premises early in the morning and removed a statue of Thileepan that had been installed there, taking it away in a vehicle — an incident LankaNewz reported at the time in Police remove Thileepan statue from Nallur memorial a day after commemoration. No reason or legal basis for that removal was announced publicly at the time.
The instruction reported on Saturday differs in form from the September action: rather than police removing an object directly, it directs the elected local authority that holds the lease to carry out the demolition itself.
Not reported
The filing does not state a deadline for compliance, whether the Municipal Council has responded or agreed to act, which specific structures are covered by the order, or what legal provision the Deputy DIG relied on in issuing the instruction. No comment from the Municipal Council, the mayor or the Deputy DIG beyond the contents of the letter is included.
LankaNewz checked Hiru News, NewsFirst, Colombo Gazette, Tamil Guardian, Virakesari, EconomyNext and island.lk for independent reporting on the letter and found none at the time of writing. Ada Derana remained unreachable, returning a CloudFront block.