Deava Claims Rs. 100Billion for Defamation

(January, 14, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Douglas Devananda, Secretary General of EPDP and Minister of Social Services and Social Welfare, has sent a letter of demand through his lawyer M. K. P. Chandralal on 8.01.2008 to Shakthi TV channel claiming Rs. 100 billion as damages and unconditional apology for defamation caused to him by telecasting a programme called ‘Minnel’, produced and conducted by Sri Ranga Jeyaratnem. The letter of demand served, says that the television channel has telecast a live programme called ‘Minnel’ on the 30th December 2007 with the late Parliamentarian T. Maheshwaran.

In that programme the commentator Sri Ranga Jeyaratnam of the TV channel put forward question to the late parliamentarian to extract desired accusations against the Minister and his party, the Elam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) to enable him to blame the Minster for the subsequent murder of the Parliamentarian. Many a time the commentator had attempted to obtain answers from the late Parliamentarian implicating the Minister’s name and his party to the Human Rights violations in Jaffna.

In the letter of demand it is also stated that Sri Ranga Jeyaratnam has been in the habit of making generalized wild accusations and defamatory statements against the Minister continuously accusing him on every Sunday in the said ‘Minnel’ programme for murders and disappearances of Tamil people.

It is stated in the said letter of demand that the Minister categorically denies the involvement of the members of his political party, namely, the Elam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) in the killings or violent activities that take place in the country.

Chandralal, the lawyer states that the ‘Minnel’ programme is being telecast with sinister motive for political reasons and also to tarnish the image of his client. He further states that this programme which is per se defamatory of his client’s reputation, his public life and social standing as a Cabinet Minister and the Secretary General of Elam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP), a recognized political party by the commissioner of elections through which his client has been representing the electoral district of Jaffna in Parliament, since 1994.

Chandralal in the letter of demand also says that this ‘Minnel’ programme has caused irreparable damages to his client’s political career and reputation and tries to destroy him politically. He therefore demands payment of Rs. 100 billion within 14 days on receipt of the letter of demand; failure to adhere to this demand that he has been instructed by his client to resort to legal action to recover the above sum from the television channel causing defamation to his client.