April 2026

U.S. Embassy Marks 15 Years of American Corner in Jaffna, Unveils “Freedom 250” Pavilion
Public Affairs Officer Menaka Nayyar and Regional Public Engagement Specialist Miquela Burke during the 15th anniversary celebration of American Corner Jaffna in Nallur on April 26. 

U.S. Embassy Marks 15 Years of American Corner in Jaffna, Unveils “Freedom 250” Pavilion

JAFFNA — The U.S. Embassy in Sri Lanka on April 26 marked the fifteenth anniversary of the American Corner Jaffna at its premises on Athiyady Road in Nallur, and inaugurated a new outdoor structure it has named the “Freedom 250 Pavilion.” The pavilion forms part of a global State Department initiative built around the 250th anniversary of American independence, which falls on July 4, 2026. The American Corner Jaffna was established in 2011 in partnership with the Jaffna Social Action Center, in
April 2026 Monitor Memo
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A.G. Perarivalan, Once Convicted in Rajiv Gandhi Assassination Case, Enrolls as a Lawyer

A.G. Perarivalan, Once Convicted in Rajiv Gandhi Assassination Case, Enrolls as a Lawyer

CHENNAI, India — A.G. Perarivalan, who spent 31 years in prison in connection with the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi before being released by India’s Supreme Court in 2022, has enrolled as a lawyer, returning to the legal system where he once fought for his freedom. Mr. Perarivalan, 54, was registered as an advocate with the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry at the Madras High Court complex this week, according to officials. The enrollment marks a notable turn in a
April 2026 JM Exclusive
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Sowing the Future

Sowing the Future

A policy framework for agricultural revival in Sri Lanka's Northern Province — and the case for treating it not as a welfare programme, but as an economic system designed to win. By Jeevan Thiagarajah The Northern Province of Sri Lanka holds more than 100,000 hectares of paddy land, some of South Asia's most productive onion soil, and a coastline that ranks among the country's richest fishing grounds. Revitalising it is not merely a regional ambition — it is a national opportunity. This pie
April 2026 Guest Column
Jeevan Thiyagaraja

Jeevan Thiyagaraja
Jaffna M.P. Archchuna Ramanathan Arrested After Brandishing Gun in Land Dispute

Jaffna M.P. Archchuna Ramanathan Arrested After Brandishing Gun in Land Dispute

JAFFNA, Sri Lanka — Ramanathan Archchuna, a controversial Jaffna District M.P., was arrested on Monday after he was accused of brandishing a firearm during a land dispute in Periyavilaan, the police said. The arrest follows the circulation of video footage, reviewed by Jaffna Monitor, that appears to show Mr. Archchuna pointing a handgun during a confrontation with a group of residents, including women. Police said one of the women involved in the dispute was also arrested and remanded by cour
April 2026 JM Exclusive
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The ‘High’ Road to Enlightenment

The ‘High’ Road to Enlightenment

Colombo — Shortly after 10 p.m. on a Saturday in late April, a Thai AirAsia jet from Bangkok touched down at Bandaranaike International Airport. Among the passengers, twenty-two young men in saffron robes filed quietly toward the arrivals hall, the way Buddhist monks in transit have moved through this airport for decades — without much notice, and almost without question. They did not get that far. By dawn on Sunday, officers of the Police Narcotics Bureau had laid out the contents of their su
April 2026 JM Exclusive
Jaffna Monitor

Jaffna Monitor
The Double-Edged Sword: Navigating the Human and Social Paradoxes of the Bhagavad Gita
The warrior prince Arjuna and his charioteer Krishna - the key protagonist of the Mahabharata war. Image obtained from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Licence

The Double-Edged Sword: Navigating the Human and Social Paradoxes of the Bhagavad Gita

Mahesh Nirmalan MD, FRCA, PhD, FFICM, University of Manchester, United Kingdom Human life is defined by a deep-seated paradox which at times may seem unsurmountable. On the one hand we are biological organisms subject to the rules of physics and chemistry and therefore subject to entropy, decay and dissolution. We get hungry, tired, we age and ultimately, we all cease to function. Yet within this fragile and time limited existence there remains a sense of ‘I’ or ‘me’ that feels constant. Despit
April 2026 Guest Column
Prof. Mahesh Nirmalan

Prof. Mahesh Nirmalan
G.L. Peiris, in Jaffna, Revisits Federalism and Says Sri Lanka’s Slide Into War Was Avoidable

G.L. Peiris, in Jaffna, Revisits Federalism and Says Sri Lanka’s Slide Into War Was Avoidable

Delivering the S.J.V. Chelvanayakam Memorial Oration at Jaffna Central College, the legal scholar and former minister traced decades of missed opportunities for political accommodation. The full text of his address is published below. JAFFNA, Sri Lanka — On the forty-ninth anniversary of the death of S. J. V. Chelvanayakam — the lawyer who founded the Federal Party and gave the Tamil demand for self-rule its modern political form — G. L. Peiris on Sunday delivered the S.J.V. Chelvanayakam Memor
April 2026 JM Exclusive
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Controversial Jaffna MP Ramanathan Archchuna Brandishes Handgun in Land Dispute

Controversial Jaffna MP Ramanathan Archchuna Brandishes Handgun in Land Dispute

JAFFNA, Sri Lanka — Ramanathan Archchuna, a controversial Member of Parliament from Jaffna, is again facing scrutiny after he was seen brandishing a handgun during a land dispute, according to video reviewed by Jaffna Monitor and interviews with witnesses — an episode that has also raised fresh questions about the authorities who authorized him to carry a firearm. The episode occurred on Saturday in the Periyavilaan area of Jaffna, where the property at the center of the confrontation is curren
April 2026 Monitor Memo
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