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by Kumar Wethasinghe and Indeewara Thilakarathne

The High Court of Colombo Sarath Ambepitiya yesterday convicted and imposed 200 year jail sentence to six LTTE cadres including LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran with conspiring to and carrying out the bombing of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka killing over 78 persons and causing extensive loss and damage to private and public property on January 31,1996.

In this case, the accused were indicted with conspiring to commit mischief to the Central Bank building at Fort, an offence punishable under Section 3 of the Prevention of Terrorism Act. Accordingly ten accused were charged on 13 counts including destroying the Central Bank building using explosives and committing the murders of 78 people at the same time on the same day.

The accused were further charged with planning , conspiring and directing terrorist and violent activities along with Arulananthan alias Suresh and Sellia Rajamohan (now deceased) at Vauniya, Chavakachcheri, Kilinochchi and Colombo during the said period. According to the Government valuer, the cost of damages exceeds Rs. 1,050 million. Besides 1,313 persons were injured, 324 vehicles and 40 motorcycles destroyed.

The names of the accused who were convicted include Valupillai Prabhakaran alias Thambi alias Kirumakaram, alias Karikalan alias Velusamy puthra alias Alpha (1/A, Siva Shankar alias Pottu Amman (2/A) Kandiah Jeewa Mohan alias Charles Master (3/A), Wigneshwaran Parinippan alias Siva Samy alias Gunaseelan (4/A) Kadirgama Thambi Sivakumar alias Ragu alias Ramesh Subramanium Wigneshwaran (5/A), Sellaiaha Nawaratne (6/A), Rajadurai Sathurukulasingham (7/A), Kandiah Sri Ganesh (8/A), Ranaiah Poopathy (9/A) and Karupiah Kamalanathan (10/A).

In this case, the trial against accused LTTE leader Prabhakaran and its military wing leader Pottu Amman and 6 LTTE cadres proceeded in absentia. However Wigneshwaran Prinippan (4 accused) and Kadiragami Thambi Sivakuma (5 accused) who were arrested after the incident were present.

At the outset State Counsel Sajeewa Samaranayake informed the Court that the 4th accused under remand custody was sick and unable to be present in Court yesterday.

The Counsel urged Court that due to his absence the delivery of this judgement need not be postponed and accordingly the Court held that the 4th accused be produced in Court on November 6 to pronounce the order on him .

The Judge Ambepitiya in his 126 paged Judgement said altogether there were 750 charges against the accused. He said during the prolonged trial the Court has found ample evidence to prove the charges brought against 6 accused and that the Court determined accused 2,3 ,7 and 9 as not guilty in the absence of material to prove their charges.

Judge Ambepitiya said in consideration of the evidence against the other accused who had engaged in disastrous activities, it was the duty of the judiciary to keep them away from free society. Therefore, the Court imposed a 20 year jail term for each of the ten counts on the accused who were found guilty.The Court also ordered that all movable and immoveble property of the accused be confiscated and further to issue open warrants on the four accused who were absconding.

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