Monitor Memo

The Jaffna Magistrate's Court has ordered former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to submit a sworn affidavit by February 6, 2026, detailing the death threats he claims are preventing his appearance in court for a case involving the enforced disappearance of two political activists 14 years ago. The directive came after Rajapaksa's legal team informed the court that the former president was unable to travel to Jaffna due to security concerns, specifically citing death threats against him. The cour

Emeritus Professor Velupillai Tharmaratnam, the founding Dean of the Faculty of Science at the University of Jaffna and a distinguished mathematician, has passed away. Professor Tharmaratnam, who served as Dean from 1978 to 1984, was instrumental in establishing the foundational infrastructure and academic standards of the Faculty of Science during the institution's formative years following its separation from the University of Sri Lanka. Joining the University of Jaffna in the late 1970s aft

In an incident that has triggered both public anger and quiet amusement across the Northern Province, Karaituraiyappattu Pradeshiya Sabha Chairman Chinnarasa Logeswaran was found passed out under the influence of alcohol on a narrow lane in broad daylight. The episode occurred during Maaveerar Week, a period of solemn remembrance for the Tamil community, further intensifying public condemnation of the chairman’s behaviour. Social Media Turns Incident into Satire Photos and video clips of Log

In an unusual turn of events, Jaffna District MP Ramanathan Archchuna found himself rescued by Sri Lankan military personnel — just hours after attending Maaveerar Naal commemorations honouring fallen LTTE cadres the previous night. Adding to the irony, he appeared to be wearing the same shirt he had worn at the Maaveerar event, indicating he was likely returning from the previous night’s ceremony when the army stepped in to rescue him around midday. Speaking in Parliament, Archchuna described

A 35-year-old activist who had repeatedly reported illegal sand mining was killed after being struck by a tipper lorry carrying illicitly mined sand — in what his family alleges was a deliberate attack. Selvaratnam Sopanath, a resident of Thiruvaiyāru, died on the spot near Mottai Bridge on Wilson Road in Kilinochchi. According to relatives, Sopanath was travelling on a motorcycle with his wife from Kilinochchi town towards Iranamadu when the incident occurred. As he attempted to pull over to

Twenty-three schools in Vavuniya North have been shut down due to lack of Tamil students, a phenomenon that Member of Parliament Ravikaran attributes to what he calls the systematic displacement of Tamil residents through expanding Sinhalese settlements and land acquisitions in the area. Ravikaran raised the issue during the Vavuniya District Development Coordinating Committee recently, urging Deputy Minister Upali Samarasinghe and Northern Province Governor Nagalingam Vethanayagan to take imme