Ramanathan Archchuna arrested

Jaffna District Member of Parliament, Mr. Ramanathan Archchuna, was arrested by the Ilavalai Police this morning (27). This was under charges of threatening two women with a firearm, criminal intimidation, and unlawful entry into land in the Periyavilan area of Jaffna.

The MP was arrested this morning when he went to the police station to give a statement regarding the incident, and his firearm was also taken into police custody.

The reason for this arrest is a heated situation that occurred on the 25th in a land in the Periyavilan area. When the MP went there to clear the said land, a severe altercation arose with two women regarding the ownership of the land. Video footage widely circulated on social media showed the enraged MP publicly threatening the women by pointing the pistol he had in his hand. Furthermore, relatives had accused the MP of kicking a young male relative of the women who had come to mediate the dispute.

This conflict arose against the backdrop of an ongoing court case concerning the boundaries and ownership of the land that led to the dispute. On the day of the incident, a female lawyer who was present at the scene also argued with the women and video-recorded the event. However, following a complaint made by the MP to the Ilavalai Police after the conflict, one of the women who was threatened with a firearm was arrested by the police and remanded until the 29th after being produced before the Mallakam Magistrate's Court. With special permission from the court, her one-year-old child was also allowed to stay with her mother in prison.

Initially, there was significant attention on the fact that no legal action had been taken against the Member of Parliament for publicly threatening a woman and assaulting a young man. However, following further investigations into the incident, MP Ramanathan Archchuna was arrested today, and the police are currently preparing to produce him before the Mallakam Magistrate's Court.