150kg of gold seized from the Tigers taken to court

Deputy Minister of Defence, Retired Major General Aruna Jayasekara, stated that the process of handing over 150 kg of gold jewelry, discovered by the Army from LTTE camps in Mullaitivu and Kilinochchi areas and their surroundings, to the court is currently underway.

Responding to a question raised by Jaffna District MP Mr. Sivagnanam Sreetharan in Parliament yesterday (23), the Deputy Minister stated this. He clearly stated that the Sri Lanka Army has never forcibly taken jewelry from the Tamil people in the North and East.

He pointed out that the process of presenting these gold items to the court is a complex program carried out jointly by the Judiciary, the Criminal Investigation Department, the Gem and Jewellery Authority, and the Central Bank of Sri Lanka. The Deputy Minister, stating that these handover activities are expected to be completed within the next three months, also declared that thereafter a formal program would be initiated to hand over the jewelry to their true owners.

In 2014, the then-government had made arrangements to return the jewelry found in this manner to 2015 individuals whose identities were confirmed. Arrangements have been made to find the true owners of the remaining gold items and hand them over under a similar transparent program. However, Mr. Aruna Jayasekara further stated that the Army does not currently possess complete information regarding the owners of these gold items, and the most appropriate action would be taken after the completion of the judicial process.

The Deputy Minister emphasized here that this jewelry found from LTTE camps has never been discussed on election platforms or in other election-related discussions. Furthermore, he stated while speaking in Parliament that no matter related to these gold ornaments has been included in the election manifesto of the National People's Power (Jathika Jana Balawegaya).