Army committed to protect Hindu places of worship

Anushika Ranadewa and Rakshana Sriyantha

Recently the Udayan newspaper stated that the Army was responsible for looting Hindu Kovils in the Batticaloa District.

The Udayan paper also stated that the Army was bent on vandalizing and destroying Hindu places of worship.

Eastern Province Security Forces Commander Major General Lal Perera stated that the Sri Lankan Army is committed to protect religious places and not to destroy them.

"Even during the war, the Army protected Kovils," the Major General added. He said the Sri Lanka Army not only protects but also rebuilds the destroyed temples and Kovils. "Therefore the allegations had no basis".

"What has the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) done to preserve Hindu Kovils?" questioned Major General Perera. "investigations have revealed the identity of those responsible and the suspects have been arrested in this connection," the Major General said.

Investigations revealed that a burglary took place on June 1 at Pillaiyaar Kovil in Vellaveli and it was carried out by burglars from the area.

one suspect was arrested and the other suspect had fled the village.

Batticaloa Police are conducting further investigations, he said.

The Major General stated that the TNA and some media sympathetic to it are trying to place the blame on the Army for incidents which are totally baseless and far from the truth.

"The main intention of such allegations are to dislodge the Sri Lankan Army from the North and East".

The Major General said all communities in the North and East, the Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims live together and work in harmony and unity irrespective of caste, creed, religion or ethnicity. "This is such a headache for certain people," the Major General said.