Kingsley Rasanayagam


Kingsley Rasanayagam was a Sri Lankan Tamil politician and former Member of Parliament. In 2004 Rasanayagam was selected by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam as a Tamil National Alliance parliamentary candidate. He represented the Batticaloa multi-member electoral district for the TNA in the Sri Lankan Parliament, for a short period of time between April 2004 and May 2004. In May 2004, he was pressured to resign, by the LTTE because of his close relationship with former LTTE Eastern Province leader Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan alias Karuna Amman. LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran feared that he would become a patron to the political party registered by Karuna Amman, Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal.

Early life

Kingsley Rasanayagam was born in Kallaru, Batticaloa. He was a Tamil Christian. His father was a schoolmaster when he moved to the Batticaloa town at Kingsly's younger age.

Politics

Rasanayagam was involved in Illankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi aka Federal Party since his early days. He started playing a prominent role as a member of the Batticaloa citizens committee after 1983. He was a close associate of senior LTTE leader Kasi Anandan by the Indian Peace Keeping Force period during 1987-90. He resigned from Peoples' Bank and began working with the Tamils Rehabilitation Organisation. After that, he became a trusted confidant of Karuna Amman. With the help of Amman, Rasanayagam contested in 2004 Parliamentary elections and won. Because TNA salewarts like Joseph Pararajasingham and Pakkiyaselvam Ariyanethiran, failed to get selected in the election, LTTE pressurized Rasanayagam to resign. He resigned from his parliamentary seat in May 2004.

Death

Around 6:20 p.m., 19 October 2004, two LTTE pistol gang members arrived in a motorcycle and shot him dead near Kalliyankaadu cemetery in Iruthayapuram within Batticaloa municipal limits.