Vehicles lying in Mullaithivu claimed by original owners

Shirajiv SIRIMANE in Mullaithivu

Unclaimed vehicles lying on the stretch of the final battle line in the Mullaitivu area are being fast cleared with their original owners claiming them.

Brigadier K Jagath Wijetilleke, 68 division Brigade Commander said these vehicles were fraudulently brought to the North mainly from the South.

“Some vehicles were stolen while number plates of others had been substituted,” he said.

Some others had been ‘budded’ or their engines changed,” he said.

Most vehicles were sold to unsuspecting Northerners during the time of the peace process while other vehicles were used by the LTTE, Brigadier Wijetilleke said.

He said around 75 people visit the area daily where the vehicles are parked. The government had on many occasions published the numbers of these vehicles and the genuine owners had cleared them, he said.

“Since normality has returned and civil administration is gathering momentum, the government wants to clear these areas for development,” he said. A Treasury official said several deadlines were set to hand over these vehicles to their true owners and this would be completed by end of April.

“The government is then likely to sell the balance vehicles for scrap,” the official said.