M. K. Eelaventhan | |
|---|---|
| Member of Parliament forNational List | |
| In office 2004–2007 | |
| Succeeded by | Raseen Mohammed Imam |
| Personal details | |
| Born | M. K. Kanagentran (1932-09-14)14 September 1932 |
| Died | 28 April 2024(2024-04-28) (aged 91) Canada |
| Political party | Tamil Eelam Liberation Front |
| Other political affiliations | Tamil National Alliance |
| Alma mater | St. John's College, Jaffna Wesley College, Colombo |
Manicavasagar Kanagasabapathy Eelaventhan (bornM. K. Kanagentran, 14 September 1932 – 28 April 2024) was a Sri Lankan Tamil politician who was a Member of Parliament.
Kanagentran was born on 14 September 1932.[1][2] He was the son of Kanagasabapathy, a station master fromNallur in northernCeylon.[2] He was educated atSt. John's College, Jaffna andWesley College, Colombo.[2]
Eelaventhan died in Canada on 28 April 2024, at the age of 91.[3]
Kanagentran worked at theCentral Bank of Ceylon, eventually becoming head of the Tamil translation section in the Economic Research Department before retiring in 1980.[2][4]
Kanagentran was an active member of theIllankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi (ITAK) but in 1970 joinedV. Navaratnam's Tamil Self Rule Party.[2][5] He later re-joined ITAK, which was now part of theTamil United Liberation Front (TULF).[4][5] Kanagentran was president of the TULF's Colombo branch.[5] He was a victim of the1977 riots.[5] He became a high profile advocate ofTamil Eelam and changed his name to Eelaventhan which means "King of Eelam" inTamil.[5] In 1980 he and others left ITAK to form the Tamil Eelam Liberation Front (TELF).[2] Eelaventhan was TELF's secretary.[2]
With the escalation of violence Eelaventhan, like many Sri Lankan Tamil politicians, moved toTamil Nadu in 1981.[4] He and four others were arrested inMadras in February 1997 on charges of procuring medicine for theLiberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.[4][5] All five wereacquitted in August 1999.[4] Eelaventhan wasdeported to Sri Lanka on 4 December 2000.[4][6]
Eelaventhan was appointed aTamil National AllianceNational List MP in theSri Lankan Parliament following the2004 parliamentary election.[7][8] He forfeited his seat in Parliament in November 2007 for being absent for more than three months.[9][10]
Eelaventhan emigrated to Canada where in May 2010 he was elected to theTransnational Constituent Assembly of Tamil Eelam.[11]
