THE rumor mill has it that the LTTE's much feared intelligence leader has either surrendered or been arrested by the SLA Special Forces and is held in an unknown location. Surprisingly it was the pro-LTTE blogs which broke the news first and have been supporting it, even while the government has denied holding him.
There are a number of possibilities here; it could be true that Pottu is in government custody and if so, military intelligence can be expected to work on him for information purposes. Interrogation would focus not only on current activity in the Wanni, but go a long way back to include information on the overseas diaspora and their financing activities. Given the fact that making the enemy aware of this information source would give them forewarning of potential government strategies the SLG would logically deny holding him. However the absence of any visible activity such as arrest of potential suicide bombers lurking in the suburbs, throws this story into doubt. It was known that Pottu was operating with an group of about 30 black Tiger suicide cadres a few weeks ago.
There is a greater likelihood that Pottu has been either arrested or liquidated by the LTTE leadership. This could be due to a combination of factors, including a feeble attempt to make a rift between India and Sri Lanka based on Pottu being on the wanted liest for the Gandhi assasination. Another is to avoid a backlash from Pottu's own following of seasoned cadres who could pose a threat to the life of the LTTE leader, if he is killed. Similar conflicts have happened within the organization when previous secondary level leaders were eliminated by the LTTE leader Velupillai. It is also well known that following a similar attempt on his life, the Sea-Tiger leader Soosai retains a group of body guards for his personal protection. Soosai lost his own son in the attempt on his life, blamed on Pottu Amman.
There are a number of possibilities here; it could be true that Pottu is in government custody and if so, military intelligence can be expected to work on him for information purposes. Interrogation would focus not only on current activity in the Wanni, but go a long way back to include information on the overseas diaspora and their financing activities. Given the fact that making the enemy aware of this information source would give them forewarning of potential government strategies the SLG would logically deny holding him. However the absence of any visible activity such as arrest of potential suicide bombers lurking in the suburbs, throws this story into doubt. It was known that Pottu was operating with an group of about 30 black Tiger suicide cadres a few weeks ago.
There is a greater likelihood that Pottu has been either arrested or liquidated by the LTTE leadership. This could be due to a combination of factors, including a feeble attempt to make a rift between India and Sri Lanka based on Pottu being on the wanted liest for the Gandhi assasination. Another is to avoid a backlash from Pottu's own following of seasoned cadres who could pose a threat to the life of the LTTE leader, if he is killed. Similar conflicts have happened within the organization when previous secondary level leaders were eliminated by the LTTE leader Velupillai. It is also well known that following a similar attempt on his life, the Sea-Tiger leader Soosai retains a group of body guards for his personal protection. Soosai lost his own son in the attempt on his life, blamed on Pottu Amman.
A third and a more deadly possibility is that leaking the news of Pottu's arrest could be the first step in a double deception by the LTTE. Letting the news cause a denial by the government would in turn cause thinking along the lines as above; that the LTTE is in the process of liquidating him. This could potentially lead his pursuers to lose any sense of urgency, opening the doors for Pottu to possibly carry out multiple suicide attacks targetting high value individuals, military installations or even civillians.
Whether Pottu was arrested or not will come to the surface later, in the event it carries news value. Given the momentum of action in the war zone, the impoartance of such news may be fading fast, thus providing the ideal opportunity to his abductors, to liquidate Pottu without anyone's awareness. The deadly silence from both sides could be telling a story that few are able to read and understand.
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