Maravanpulavu K. Sachithananthan, leader of the Ilankai Siva Senai organisation, has levelled serious allegations against Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) Acting General Secretary M.A. Sumanthiran, accusing him of systematically undermining the party through mass expulsions and attempting to impose a sectarian religious agenda.
Speaking to the media, Sachithananthan claimed that Sumanthiran has been the driving force behind the removal of numerous ITAK members over the past twelve years, allegedly with the intention of transforming the party into what he described as "a Christian organisation aligned with the Methodist Church."
Wave of Expulsions Since 2014
According to Sachithananthan, the number of ITAK members expelled after 2014 exceeds the total expelled during the previous 63 years of the party's existence since its founding around 1949. He named several prominent figures allegedly removed under Sumanthiran's influence, including Ariyanethiran from Batticaloa, Thavarasa from Colombo, Saravanabhavan from Jaffna, Ananthi Sasitharan from Manipay, and Sivakaran from Mannar.
"Wherever voices were raised in support of the Tamil people, and wherever dissenting voices emerged, those individuals were being removed from the party," Sachithananthan alleged, claiming that Sumanthiran was reducing ITAK to a "politically sterile entity."
The Ilankai Siva Senai leader further alleged that Kilinochchi District MP Sivagnanam Sritharan is now being targeted for expulsion, claiming Sumanthiran had recently indicated that steps were underway to remove him from the party as well.
Religious Conversion Allegations
Sachithananthan's most contentious claim centered on what he described as Sumanthiran's alleged agenda to transform ITAK into a Christian missionary organisation. He claimed that Sumanthiran, who he said serves as a preacher in the Methodist Church, had already removed key party figures—whom he termed the "pillars" of ITAK—in pursuit of this objective.
Call for Leadership Change
Sachithananthan argued that if anyone should be expelled from ITAK, it should be Sumanthiran himself, along with Acting President C.V.K. Sivagnanam. He made additional allegations concerning Sivagnanam's historical role during the 1974 World Tamil Research Conference.
According to Sachithananthan, Sivagnanam—serving as Jaffna Municipal Commissioner at the time—refused permission for the conference to be held in an open ground, restricting it to Veerasingam Hall instead. He claimed this decision contributed to the tragic incident in which eleven Tamil civilians were killed and approximately fifty injured, an episode widely regarded as a turning point in the radicalisation of Tamil youth during that period.
Editor’s Note: The allegations reported in this article are claims made by Maravanpulavu K. Sachithananthan and have not been independently verified. The Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) leadership has been contacted for comment.
